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V .  - 


THE  UNIVERSITY  OF 

NORTH  CAROLINA 

LIBRARY 


THE  WILMER  COLLECTION 

OF  CIVIL  WAR  NOVELS 

PRESENTED  BY 

RICHARD  H.  WILMER,  JR. 


/Y^ 


f^ 


A  YEAE  OF  WEECK 


21  Crue  Qtoru 


BY    A    VICTIM 


NEW    YORK 

HARPER  &  BROTHERS,  FRAXKLIX  SQUARE 

1880 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1880,  by 

HARPER  &  BROTHERS, 
In  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


All  rights  reserved. 


Stereotyped  by  Robert  Clarke  <£  Co. 


DEDICATION 


This  story  is  dedicated  to  my  much  esteemed  partner. 
General  Eoderic  Dhu  Dobson.  His  estimate  was  slightly 
incorrect,  but  there  was  yet  a  speculation  in  tne  enterprise. 
I  secured  a  march  in  time,  living  in  the  one  year  not 
less  than  ten  ;  at  that  rate  a  man  of  forty  would  have  lived 
four  hundred  years.  Whether  it  was  an  advantage  or  not, 
this  book  must  say,  I  met  the  Southern  people  in  a  way 
which  but  for  the  Dobson  estimate  had  been  impossible. 
Then  in  Dobson  himself!  While  not  wishing  to  be  under- 
stood as  meaning  that  the  world  is  not  full  of  good  men,  I 
yet  learned  that  there  was  one  person — and  that  Dobson — 
who,  take  him  all  in  all,  for  desirable  traits — the  cap-sheaf 
of  which  was  fidelity  to  friendships — you 

"  shall  not  look  upon  his  like  again." 

(iii) 


^ 

^ 


PREFACE. 


Promise,       -         -  .        -         .         .         .         108,000.00 

Eesult,     --------         G,5G4.27 


Deficit, 101,435.83 

E.  &  O.  E. 

The  above  figures  do  not  mean  weights  or  measures,  but 
solid  dollars  and  cents.  Moreover,  the  account  is  correct, 
PS  any  one  can  learn  who  will  take  the  trouble  to  read 
what  fijUows. 

Herein  also  are  to  be  found  the  reasons  why  the  wrecks 
of  that  superb  stream  of  immigration  which  flowed  into 
the  South  at  the  close  of  the  war  mostly  drifted  back  to  the 
North  within  the  year,  leaving  the  stream  dry.  The  situ- 
ation the  first  year  after  the  war  is  the  key  to  the  situa- 
tion since  then.  This  understood,  the  snail-like  progress 
of  that  section  will  no  longer  cause  surprise ;  and,  whilst 
the  reader  may  say  that,  simply  considering  its  own  inter- 
ests, the  South  could  not  have  done  worse,  it  is  also  charity 
to  remember  that  with  her  previous  training  she  could  not 
well  have  done  otherwise.  If  this  story  shall  have  the  ef- 
fect to  inspire  the  good  element  in  the  South  to  assert  itself 
against  the  lawless,  thus  hastening  the  day  of  substantial 
prosperity  in  a  region  of  unparalled  natural  advantages, 
it  will  have  accomplished  its  mission. 

(V) 


A   YEAR   OF  WRECK. 


CHAPTEK  I. 

dobson's  cotton  statement. 

It  was  in  December,  1865.  General  Dobson  came  into 
our  store,  with  a  piece  of  white  paper  in  his  hand  and  a 
slightly  flushed  ftice. 

As  ours  was  a  drug-store,  and  Dobson  a  physician,  I 
supposed  the  paper  was  a  prescription  for  me  to  fill,  and 
that  his  flushed  face  came  from  the  haste  he  had  made 
from  some  chamber  of  dangerous  sickness.  I  reached  out 
my  hand  for  the  supposed  prescription,  and  at  the  same 
time  inquired : 

"Liquid  or  solid?  " 

"  JSTeither,"  said  he,  "  but  your  fortune,"  still  holding  the 
mysterious  paper  tightly  in  his  hand. 

"  A  short  road  to  wealth,"  he  finally  added. 

"Let  me  see  what  it  is,"  I  cried  impatiently. 

"Not  so  fast,"  he  replied  deliberately.  "Let  us  retire 
to  the  privacy  of  your  counting-room  and  you  shall  know 

all." 

Our  "  counting-room  "  was  the  back  room  of  the  drug- 
store. It  was  furnished,  for  seats,  with  an  old  arm-chair 
and  a  three-legged  stool.  The  General  occupied  the  arm- 
chair, while  I  perched  upon  the  stool.  With  a  near  pros- 
pect of  a  "fortune,"  I  became,  as  is  natural,  generous,  and 
brought  in  a  bottle  of  sherry.  Two  medicine  glasses 
serve'd  as  wine-glasses.  The  General  was  tautalizingly 
Blow      He  poured   out  his   wine,   fully  two   ounces,   and 

(") 


8  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

toyed  with  it.     This,  I  afterwards  learned,  was  his  woni 
never  to  do  any  thing  in  a  hurry. 

"  Harding,"  he  said  to  me  recently,  "  if  you  want  to  be 
considered  an  important  character,  make  people  wait  for 
you." 

Finally  he  handed  me  the  paper  so  fraught  with  our  fu- 
ture destiny.     It  ran  as  follows  : 

"  Character  of  land. 
"Swamp,  above  overflow ;  raises  from  a  bale  to  a  bale 
and  a  half  of  cotton  to  the  acre. 

"  Frice. 
"  Seventy-five  dollars  per  acre,  one-third  cash  in  hand, 
balance  in  one  and  two  years,  with  interest  at  eight  per 
cent,  per  annum. 

"  Location^  name,  and  quantity  of  land. 
"Situated  on   the   Mississippi  river;    named   Hebron; 
contains  1,100  acres,  more  or  less. 

"  Producing  following  cash  results. 
"  1,100  acres,  at  §75  per  acre  (900  under  cultiva- 
tion, 200  acres  in  wood),  is $82,500 

One-third  cash  in  hand,  is 827,500 

One  year's  interest  on  same,  at  8  per- 
cent  : 2,200—829,700 

56  mules  (each  mule  cultivating 

16  acres),  at 8150  00        88,400  00 

28  double   plows,   for  breaking 

land 10  00  280  00 

40  single  plows,  for  cultivating 

land  8  00  320  00 

40  sweeps,  for  cultivating  land...  8  00  320  00 
40  scrapers,  for  cultivating  land.              8  00            320  00 
40  harrows,  for  cultivating  land.             8  00            320  00 
56  harness,  viz.:    hames,  bridle, 
collar,  trace-chains,  and  back- 
bands 7  50  420  00 


dobson's  cotton  statement.  9 

6i  dozen  hoes,  at,  per  dozen $12  00  $80  00 

2  wagons  1^0  00  240  00 

Complete  cost  of  outfit 610,700  00 

One  year's  interest  on  same,  at  8  per  cent...  856  00 

Outfit  and  interest $11,55G  00 

"  Expense,  one  year. 

"  GO  freed  men $10,800  00 

20  freed  women 2,400  00 

25  freed  children 1,500  00 

91  barrels  of  pork  (men,  4  pounds  per  week ; 
women,  3 ;  and  children,  2—350  pounds  a 

week),  at  $30  per  barrel 2,730  00 

1,209  bushels  of  corn  meal  (men  and  women, 
1  peck  a  week ;  children,  |  peck),  at  80 

cents  per  bushel ^^"^  20 

598  gallons  of  molasses  (men  and  women,  1 
pint  a  week  ;  children,  \  pint),  at  80  cents 

per  gallon '^"^^  40 

4  barrels  of  salt,  at  $5  per  barrel 20  00 

2,240  bushels  of  corn,  for  mules   (40  bushels 

to  each  mule),  at  75  cents  per  bushel 1,G80  00 

56  tons  of  hay,  for  mules  (1  ton  to  each  mule)      1,9G0  00 
Medicine,  for  men  and  beasts 375  00 

$22,910  GO 
An  average  of  8  month's  interest  on  same, 

at  8  per  cent 1,221  89 

Total  expense  of  one  year $24,132  49 

"  Receipts. 
"900  acres,  minimum  estimate,  900  bales  cot- 
ton, at  $120  per  bale $108,000  00 


1 


* 


10  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

"  Outlay  recapitulated. 
"First  payment  on  land,  and  in- 
terest   , 829,700  00 

Cost  of  outfit 11,556  00 

Expense,  one  year 2^,132  49—865,388  49 


Eeceipts,  over  all  outlay...  843,611  51 

"  Analysis,  showing  practical  results. 
"  Total  cash  outlay  of  865,388  49,  all  returned  at  end  of 
first  year;  leaving  a  balance  of  cash  on  hand,  being 
receipts  over  all  outlay 843,645  00 

Crop  of  2d  year,  900  bales,  at  8120  per  bale.  8108,000  00 

Second  payment  on  land 827,500  00 

Interest  on  same,  1  year,  at  8  per 

cent 2,200  00 

Estimate   for  current   expenses, 

2d  year 24,000  00—853,700  00 

Cash  profits  on  hand  at  end  of  2d  year...     854,300  00 

Crop  of  3d  year,  900  bales,  at  8120  per  bale.  8108,000  00 
Third  and  last  payment  on  land.  827,500  00 
Two  years  interest,  at  8  percent.       4,400  00 
Estimate   for   current  expenses, 

for  3d  year 24,000  00—855,900  00 

Cash  profits  at  end  of  3d  year 852,100  00 

"■  JRemarks. 

"  Thus,  it  will  be  seen,  the  entire  cash  outlay  is  returned  at 
the  close  of  the  first  year,  and  a  net  profit  of  843,600  51. 
The  second  year,  after  making  the  second  payment  on  the 
land,  there  will  be  left  854,300;  and  the  third  year, 
852,100. 

"  This  plantation  would  have  sold  readily,  before  the 
war,  for  8125  an  acre  in  gold  ;  and  it  is  reasonable  to  pre- 
dict that  at  the  end  of,  say,  the  fourth  year,  it  will   be 


dobson's  cotton  statement.  11 

marketable  for  at  least  SlOO  an  acre.  If  we  should  con- 
clude to  sell  at  that  time  we  would  have  the  follow! ncr  sum 
to  divide : 

Fourth   crop  clear,  less  62-1,000   expenses  in 

working  it,  say  900  bales $7G,000  00 

Eleven  hundred  acres  of  land,  at  8100  per 

acre $110,000  00 

Mules,  plows,  and  general  outfit,  worth,  say...         7,500  00 

6193,500  00 
Which  added  to  the 150,011  57 

Previously  divided,  makes  a  total  profit  in 

the  handsome  sum  of 8343,511  57 

The  whole  cash  capital,  865,388  49,  which  includes  inter- 
est at  8  per  cent.,  having  been  returned,  at  the  end  of  the 
first  year,  as  bef(3re  stated. 

"  The  j^ield  is  placed  at  its  minimum.  Should  the  crop, 
in  any  year,  or  each  year,  approach  a  maximum  yield,  the 
profits  would  be  correspondingly  increased.  At  the  same 
time,  the  estimate  of  expenses  is  put  at  the  maximum 
figure,  so  that  if  there  are  any  changes  in  the  result  each 
year,  it  will  be  rather  in  favor  of  the  profit  side  of  the 
statement  than  against  it." 


CHAPTEK   II. 

HOW  dobson's  statement  impressed  me. 

Here  was  a  fortune — at  least  a  fortune  on  paper. 

I  scanned  the  statement  again  closely  from  beginning  to 
end  ;  went  over  Dobson's  additions  and  subtractions,  to  see 
that  he  had  made  no  mistake — rather  in  hopes  I  might  find 
some  blunders  in  what  appeared  to  be  his  Gibralter  of  fig- 


12  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

ures,  which  I  could  expose,  so  as  to  bring  his  beauti- 
ful edifice  tumbling  before  his  eyes ;  fearful  at  the  same 
time  (such  is  human  nature),  that  I  might  do  so,  and  thus 
break  the  charmed  spell  his  figures  had  already  Avoven 
about  me. 

Failing  to  find  any  flaw  in  the  results  made  by  Dobson's 
figures,  I  became  childish,  and  commenced  a  criticism  of 
their  shape,  the  formation  of  his  letters,  his  punctuation, 
etc. — as  if  finding  these  defective  could  alter  the  facts, 
if  Dobson  had  stated  but  facts,  anymore  than  the  value  of 
a  white  diamond  could  be  changed  by  its  setting,  or  the 
flavor  of  a  draught  of  old  Ehenish  wine  could  be  changed  by 
its  being  quaffed  from  a  tin  cup,  instead  of  a  cut-glass  gob- 
let. But  even  here  there  was  no  flaw.  Dobson  writes  a 
beautiful  feminine  hand,  and  his  figures  are  as  gracefully 
turned  as  the  legs  of  a  deer.  No  fault  could  be  found  in 
the  mechanical  execution  of  the  paper.  Dobson  had  evi- 
dently been  an  accountant  at  one  time  in  his  life,  for  there 
were  the  red-ink,  marks  of"  pounce,"  lines  that  could  only 
have  been  drawn  by  the  aid  of  a  rule,  and  it  was  folded 
faultlessly.  In  short,  Dobson's  statement  hadn't  a  flaw  in 
it.  Considered  simply  as  a  statement,  it  was  a  grand  suc- 
cess. 

Now,  I  did  want  to  find  "a  short  cut  "  to  a  fortune — 
show  me  the  human  being  who  does  not! — and  this  seemed 
to  be  one. 

In  this  mood,  I  raised  my  eyes  from  the  statement  and 
met  Dobson's  looking  at  me  inquiringly.  He  continued 
looking  at  me  for  a  full  minute,  then  he  took  a  sip  of  wine. 
Finally,  after  a  lapse  of  two  minutes,  during  which  not  a 
word  was  sj^oken,  Dobson  asked  : 

"Well,  what  do  you  think  of  the  enterprise?" 

"It  looks  well,  but  can  you  buy  the  plantation  at  the 
price  named  ?  " 

Dobson  drew  from  his  pocket  a  letter,  which  he  handed 
to  me,  saying  :  "  Eead  for  yourself" 


now  dobson's  statement  impressed  me.         13 

The  author  was  evidently  an  aged  man,  for  he  wrote  a 
tremulous  hand.     The  letter  ran  as  follows  : 

-,  December  G,  1865. 


u  Sir  ._i  ^vill  sell  you  my  Hebron  plantation,  situated  on 
the  Mississippi  river,  containing  1,100  acres  (900  acres  un- 
der cultivation,  and  200  woods)  for  $75  per  acre,  one-third 
cash,  balance  in  one  and  two  years,  in  equal  payments, 
which  shall  bear  interest  at  the  rate  of  eight  per  cent,  per 
annum.  The  Hebron  plantation  is  well  supplied  with 
cabins,  has  a  steam  gin-house,  steam  saw-mill,  steam  grist- 
mill, blacksmith  shop,  and  mule  stable,  all  complete,  and  in 
perfect  condition.  If  you  contemplate  a  purchase  in  the 
South,  should  be  pleased  to  see  you  here. 
"  Eespectfully, 

"  Jonathan  Hampson. 

"  To  General  Dobson. 

a  p_  S.— Hebron  place  is  free  from  overflow,  and  its  yield 
is  a  bale  to  a  bale  and  a  half  an  acre.  J.  H." 

I  handed  the  letter  back  to  Dobson,  convinced  on  the 
question  in  point. 

"  Have  you  ever  seen  this  plantation  ?  What  is  the  con- 
dition of  public  opinion  in  its  locality?  Do  you  consider 
it  safe  for  ^"orthern  immigration  to  go  there  ?"  I  asked. 

"  I  campaigned  through  that  country  during  the  war, 
and  then  made  up  my  mind  if  I  came  out  of  the  service  alive, 
I  would  seek  a  location  there ;  and  it  is  in  order  to  carry 
out  this  old  determination  that  I  have  opened  the  above 
correspondence.  In  answer  to  your  last  question,  I  believe 
the  Southern  people  to  be  thoroughly  subdued.  Then- 
newspapers  say  they  want  Northern  immigration  and  cap- 
ital to  settle  among  them,  and  I  think  they  should  be  taken 
at  their  word,  until  we  have  proof  to  the  contrary.  At  any 
rate,"  said  General  Dobson,  a  little  proudly,  "  I  assisted  ni 
conquering  the  rebellion ;  by  virtue  of  the  sacrifice  of  the 


14  A   YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

blood  and  treasure  of  this  Nation,  our  flag  floats  over  every 
part  of  the  late  Confederacy." 

"  We  went  into  that  country  once  as  warriors  to  conquer 
a  rebellion,  and  success  crowned  our  efl'orts  ;  we  will  now 
go  as  j)eaccful  citizens  with  the  plow  and  the  pruning- 
hook,  and  I  believe  success  will  again  come  to  us.  The 
Southern  country  needs  the  regenerating  influences  of  the 
North.  The  same  element  that  swept  across  the  Alleghe- 
nies,  that  felled  the  forests  a  long  way  in  the  direction  of  the 
setting  sun,  that  tunneled  mountains,  that  bridged  rivers, 
that  has  spun  a  network  of  railroads  throughout  the  coun- 
trj^ — that  same  element  is  needed  in  the  South.  What  it 
has  done,  and  is  still  doing,  for  the  North,  it  can — now  that 
free  labor  when  it  goes  there  will  not  be  brought  in  com- 
petition with  slave  labor — do  for  the  South. 

"  Coming  down  to  our  individual  cases — we  can  not  fail. 
We'will  not  be  satisfied  with  the  almost  primitive  farming 
utensils  now  in  use  in  the  South  ;  instead  of  the  small  plow 
which  turns  a  furrow  only  three  to  four  inches  in  depth,  we 
will  use  a  larger  one  that  will  give  us  a  depth  of  eight  to 
ten  inches.  AYe  will  discard  the  heavy  plantation  hoe, 
which  is  a  load  in  itself  to  carry,  and  use  the  light  steel 
hoe,  with  which  the  laborer  can  strike  five  blows,  and  with 
more  execution  each  time,  to  every  three  with  the  present 
one.  We  will  use  fertilizers  on  our  lands,  and  in  this  way 
increase  the  yield  to  two  bales.  We  will  also  use  labor- 
saving  machinery.  Look  at  the  cultivation  of  corn  in  the 
bottom  lands  here  :  one  farmer  with  his  cultivator  easily 
manages  forty  acres  ;  with  the  same  machinery,  we  can 
easily  cultivate  twenty  acres  in  cotton,  and,  in  the  course 
of  time,  as  the  freedmen  learn  to  handle  these  cultivators, 
the  quantity  of  land  per  man  will  be  increased. 

"  I  tell  you,  Harding,  this  is  our  '  tide,'  and  we  must  take 
advantage  of  it.  There  is  my  adjutant,  who  comes  out  of 
the  service  broken  in  health,  poor  fellow,  and  with  but  lit- 
tle in  pocket,  but  with  a  rich  uncle  who  has  promised  to 


I    BECOME    ENTHUSIASTIC   OVER   IT.  15 

help  bim,  and  thinks  the  South  just  the  place  to  mend  both 
his  health  and  his  purse.  He  will  make  a  sixth  owner  if 
we  can  get  up  the  cnteri)rise,  and  his  uncle  will  put  the 
money  up  for  him  any  day.  My  uncle,  Mr.  Joseph  Gale, 
will  put  in  a  sixth,  as  much  to  help  me  as  any  thing,  I 
fancy,  though  he  seems  to  regard  the  investment  as  I  do. 
I  will  take  a  third  ;  will  you  take  the  remaining  third  ?  "  I 
gave  Dobson  my  word  that  I  would,  if  on  visiting  the 
place  it  met  my  expectations.  We  arranged  to  take  our 
departure  within  a  week,  Adjutant  Johnson  and  Mr.  Gale 
agreeing  to  take  our  report  as  their  sufficient  guarantee. 


CHAPTER  III. 

I  BECOME  ENTHUSIASTIC  OVER  IT. 

And  so  Dobson  left  me  a  thorough  and  enthusiastic  con- 
vert to  his  scheme — left  me  repeating  to  myself :  "8343,- 
511.57  profit  in  four  years;  one-third  of  this  is  3114,503.85, 
which  will  belong  to  me  !  "  And  then  I  took  out  my  j^en- 
cil  and  figured  that  this  would  be  828,G25.06  for  each  year, 
or  seventy-eight  dollars,  forty-two  and  two-thirds  cents  a 
day ! 

I  thought  of  our  drug-store,  with  its  gross  daily  sales 
amounting  to  less  than  S50,  from  which  the  stock  had  to 
be  kept  up,  the  wages  of  a  prescription  clerk  and  an  apoth- 
ecary's boy  paid,  my  partner's  and  my  own  daily  household 
expenses  met — thought  of  how,  to  accomplish  this,  the 
walls  of  our  pill-shop  claimed  me  from  seven  in  the  morn- 
ing until  nine  in  the  evening,  to  say  nothing  of  my  alter- 
nate morning  and  evening  Sunday  "watch  "  of  four  hours. 

I  remembered  that  Dobson,  just  before  parting,  had  said 
something  about  plodding  my  life  away  in  the  drug  busi- 


IC  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

iiess.  Dobson  was  right ;  I  was  plodding  my  life  away. 
Only  an  hour  before,  it  is  true,  our  drug  store  had  looked 
very  attractive  to  me.  I  had  scoured  the  plate-glass 
windows  ray  own  self,  so  that  they  shone  like  mirrors  ;  I 
had  rubbed  down  the  big  show-bottles,  with  their  colored 
waters,  until  they  glistened  in  the  sunlight  and  caught 
the  eye  of  the  passer;  our  soda-fountain  I  had  polished 
with  whitening,  as  well  as  the  rims  of  the  show  cases,  so 
that  they  had  all  the  luster  of  a  silver  dollar  fresh  from  the 
mint.  I  had  looked  over  our  cash  account  and  found  that 
we  had  a  few  hundred  dollars  in  bank  and  no  bills  due  for 
over  a  week.  I  remember  to  have  had  a  passing  thought 
that  twenty  years  more  in  the  drug  business,  as  things 
were  running,  would  give  me  a  fine  competency.  This 
would  make  me  a  financial  success  at  forty-nine.  Seventy- 
live  thousand  dollars  was  then  my  idea  of  a  competency. 
It  was  in  this  mood  that  Dobson  had  crossed  my  path. 

What  a  revolution  his  statement  had  accomplished  in 
me  !  What  a  puny,  sickly  thing  our  drug-store  looked  to 
me  now  !  What !  twenty  years  to  secure  a  competency  of 
seventy-five  thousand  dollars,  when  four  years  will  give  me 
one  hundred  and  fourteen  thousand  and  five  hundred  dol- 
lars ?  As  I  felt  at  that  moment  I  would  have  given  away 
my  half-interest  in  the  drug-store  had  any  one  asked  me 
for  it.  What!  spend  my  time  dealing  out  "salts  and 
senna"  by  the  five  cents'  worth,  when  an  opportunity  was 
off'ered  me  to  have  three  dollars  and  a  quarter  hurled  at 
me  every  hour  in  the  twenty-four,  or  a  nickle  a  minute? 
Perish  the  thought  ! ' 

It  was  in  this  mood  that  our  apothecary's  boy  inquired 
of  me  how  much  Epsom  salts  he  should  weigh  out  for  a 
dime.  I  replied,  "  A  barrel."  I  was  absolutely  ashamed 
of  my  business ;  it  looked  worse  than  small  to  me ;  it 
looked  mean ! 

1  walked  along  the  business  thoroughfare  on  my  way  to 
dinner  that  day,  and  felt,  or  imagined  I  felt,  the  air  of  the 


I    BECOME   ENTHUSIASTLC   OVER   IT.  17 

cit}^  to  be  Stifling.  Tiio  free  air  of  the  country  was  what 
I  wanted — farm-life,  that  was  the  thing.  No  eighty-acre 
Western  farm  either,  with  its  daily  drudgery  of  feeeding 
pigs  and  poultry,  of  being  your  own  stable  and  plow-boy, 
and  your  own  milk-man  ;  but  I  fancied  the  grand  sweep 
of  an  eleven-hundred-acre  plantation,  with  a  roll  of  labor- 
ers running  up  in  the  hundreds;  riding  on  a  fine  horse, 
with  a  broad  Panama  hat,  and  a  ringing  spur,  under  a 
Southern  sky — that  was  the  poetry  of  country  life,  so  to 
speak ;  that  was  the  country  life  I  had  in  my  mind,  and  it 
was  that  life  which  was  in  store  for  me  if  Dobson's  scheme 
worked. 

I  looked  into  the  shop-windows  as  I  passed  along  and 
saw  the  occupants  busy  with  traffic.  What  a  plodding  life 
they  were  leading,  to  be  sure — wearing  their  existence 
away  in  the  dust  and  noise,  and  the  narrow  prison-house 
of  four  walls — no  "  short  cut  "  for  them,  because  there  was 
no  Dobson  likely  to  cross  their  path,  as  mine  had  been 
crossed  !  No,  indeed  ;  such  visits  as  Dobson's  seldom  come 
to  men  ! 

I  passed  Mr.  Cooper,  the  great  banker,  sunning  himself 
in  his  window.  It  reminded  me  of  the  spider  on  the  out- 
skirts of  his  net  watching  and  waiting  for  j^rey,  and  I 
thought  what  a  poor  reward  he  was  getting  for  the  use  of 
his  money-bags — eight,  or,  at  most,  ten  per  cent.  Why, 
with  an  outlay  of  twenty-two  thousand  dollars,  which  was 
to  be  returned  to  me  within  a  year,  I  was  to  come  out  of 
an  enterprise  at  the  end  of  four  years  the  winner  of  one 
hundred  and  fourteen  thousand  dollars! 


18  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 


CHAPTER  lY. 

I  SHARE  THE  DOBSON    STATEMENT  "WITH  MY  WIFE. 

I  MET  my  wife  standing  in  the  door,  shading  her  eyes 
from  the  sunlight  with  her  kitchen  apron,  on  the  look-out 
for  me. 

She  had,  with  her  own  hands,  prepared  my  favorite  pud- 
ding, which  must  be  eaten  as  soon  as  it  was  drawn  from 
the  oven,  in  order  to  strike  it  in  its  prime,  and  her  coun- 
tenance betrayed  a  little  anxiety,  fearing  I  might  be  late. 

I  ate  my  pudding  that  day,  and  whatever  else  was  set 
before  me — at  least  I  presume  I  did.  But  if  my  din- 
ner had  been  saw-dust,  it  would  have  been  all  the  same,  so 
far  as  the  taste  went.  Man's  capacity  has  its  limit,  and 
mine  had  been  exhausted,  for  the  time  being,  over  Dobson's 
scheme.  Dinner  then  was  a  mechanical  operation.  Doubt- 
less a  night's  rest  would  restore  me  to  my  wonted  equilib- 
rium.    If  this  did  not,  I  was  in  a  bad  way. 

I  bethought  myself  of  unbosoming  my  secret  to  mj^ 
wife.  It  would  be  a  relief  to  talk  it  over  with  some  one 
besides  Dobson.  She  would  have  to  know  the  whole  sooner 
or  later,  and  woman's  instincts  are  so  keen,  I  reasoned.  If 
what  appeared  to  be  Dobson's  wheat  should  after  all  be  but 
chaff,  my  wife  might  find  it  out  and  save  me  ere  it  was  too 
late.  It  is  true,  Dobson  had  said  to  me  that  the  idea  of 
looking  around  while  campaigning  for  a  plantation  origin- 
ated with  Mrs.  Dobson.  I  knew  Mrs.  Dobson  to  be  credited 
with  the  keenest  instinct,  and  it  was,  perhaps,  presumjotion 
to  expect  that  my  little  wife  could  discover  a  flaw  in  a 
scheme  which  Mrs.  Dobson  had  originated,  and  whose  de- 
tails had  undergone  her  critical  inspection!  !N"evertheless 
it  had  before  happened  that  great  minds,  such  as   Mrs. 


WE   START    ON    OUR   TOUR   OF    INSPECTION.  19 

Dobson  was  always  credited  with,  bad  overlooked  some 
little  minutiffl  essential  to  the  success  of  a  measure ;  it 
ini£Cbt  be  so  now.  This  tbing  wbicb  looked  so  substantial 
migbt  be  only  a  bubble,  which  my  wife  would  prick ;  a 
mere  shadow,  instead  of  substance,  which  she  might  dis- 
cover and  dispel.  Not  that  I  wished  for  this  result ;  on  the 
contrary,  I  would  have  been  vexed  at  it.  I  wanted  the 
fairy  Dobson  castle,  Mrs.  Dobson  architect,  to  stand  as 
adamant. 

So,  between  the  puffs  of  an  after  dinner  cigar,  I  shared 
the  Dobson  scheme  with  Mrs.  Harding. 

Dear, good  soul,  and  ever  faithful,  after  she  had  heard  the 
whole  story,  listening  with  wrapt  attention,  she  answered : 

"  AYell,  John,  you  must  be  the  judge— our  home  here  is 
delightful,  and  it  will  be  a  little  trying  to  leave  our  friends 
and  go  so  far  away  ;  but  if  you  think  it  for  the  best,  let  it 
be  so." 

There  was  a  slight  quiver  in  her  voice,  and  her  hand 
brushed  a  something  from  her  eye;  but  it  was  only  the 
weakness  of  the  instant,  and  from  that  moment  the  dear 
little  body  entered  heart  and  soul  into  the  Dobson  scheme. 


CHAPTER   V. 

WE    START   ON    OUR   TOUR    OF    INSPECTION, 

Our  arrangements  for  starting  on  our  tour  of  in- 
spection were  complete  on  the  last  day  of  the  year,  and 
New  Year's  day  found  us  on  our  way  to  the  depot,  satchels 
in  hand. 

It  was  a  bitter  cold  day,  that  first  of  January,  1SG6,  but 
what  cared  we  for  that?  In  a  few  days  we  should  be  in 
the  South,  busking  in  its  sunshine  and  warmth. 


20  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

We  passed  numerous  parties,  acquaintances  or  friends ; 
many  of  them  starting  out  on  their  annual  round  of  New- 
Year  calls.  I  remembered  how,  a  year  ago,  I  had  made  a 
day  of  it.  My  wife  had  gently  suggested  the  idea  of  post- 
poning our  dej)arture  until  the  second  of  January,  that  1 
might  enjoy  it  again.  Perhaps  it  would  be  my  last  oppor- 
tunity for  many  years,  she  said. 

''  Does  a  day  later  matter  ?" 

''  JSTo,  a  day  later  does  not  matter,  my  dear  ;  but  I  am  in 
no  mood  for  New-Year's  calls,"  I  answered,  adding: 

"  T  have  entered  upon  the  stern  realities  of  life  now,  and 
look  upon  NcAV-Year's  calls  and  such  like  as  frivolous." 

Mrs.  Harding  had  arranged,  as  was  her  habit,  to  "  re- 
ceive," and  it  was  her  whim  that  I  should  say  my  good-bye 
to  her  in  her  little  reception  room,  where  the  table  was  set 
with  coffee,  sandwiches,  scalloped  oysters,  and  the  usual 
sweetmeats — a  little  ruse  on  her  part,  I  rightly  divined, 
to  give  me  a  glimpse  of  this  feature  of  the  New- Year's 
custom,  when  she  found  I  could  not  be  induced  to  take  a 
whole  day's  view  of  it. 

As  I  look  back  upon  it  now,  I  feel  how  I  utterly  failed 
to  appreciate  that  moment.  But  the  Dobson  scheme  wrapt 
me  as  in  a  mantle  ;  it  absorbed  my  every  thought ;  and  so, 
while  my  wife  served  me,  oh  !  so  tenderly,  picking  out  the 
largest  lumps  of  sugar  for  my  coffee,  selecting  the  choicest 
tit-bits  from  each  dish  to  tempt  me  ;  now  raising  this  cur- 
tain, now  lowering  that,  in  order  to  im^^rove  the  lights 
and  shadows  of  her  little  paradise  ;  throwing  the  register 
wide  open,  so  that  the  heat  came  up  in  great  puffs,  giving 
the  room  a  glow  of  warmth  which  would  be  in  strong  con- 
trast with  the  biting  cold  I  would  encounter  as  soon  as  I 
crossed  the  threshold  of  our  door;  hovering  near  me, 
fondly  stroking  my  hair,  and  cautioning  me,  over  and  over 
again,  to  be  careful  how  I  exposed  myself  in  that  Southern 
country; — while  she  was  showering  upon  me  all  these  little 


DOWN    THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER — A    GREAT    FRIGHT.         21 

tokens  of  wifely  affection,  I  gulped  my  coffee,  and  bolted 
what  she  set  before  me  with  a  manner  which  plainly  said  : 
"  See  here  before  you  one  of  the  pioneers  from  the  Xorth, 
taking  his  life  in  his  hands,  and  joining  that  army  of  ad- 
venturous men  who  are  seeking  a  home  in  the  South  ;  that 
army  which  is  to  build  that  country  anew,  causing  it  to 
bud  and  blossom  as  the  rose  ;  that  army  full  of  courage, 
strong  in  endurance,  with  money,  brains,  and  with  right 
arms  fully  capable  of  becoming  the  executive  officers  of 
that  courage,  endurance,  money,  and  brains.  Picture  the 
return  of  this  army  of  pioneers — the  return  of  this  pioneer 
in  particular,  after  a  four  years'  absence,  with  a  bank  ac- 
count better  by  §114,500  !  Oh,  yes,  we  will  accept  this 
little  tribute  at  the  moment  of  our  departure.  Eemember, 
however,  we  arc  on  a  pinnacle,  and  from  our  lofty  height 
you  can  only  expect  us  to  look  down  upon  you,  perhaps  to 
give  you  an  absent-minded  smile  ;  but,  as  for  entering  into 
your  frivolities,  impossible  !" 


CHAPTER  YI. 

DOWN   THE   MISSISSIPPI   RIVER — A   GREAT   FRIGHT. 

At  Cairo  we  found  the  steamer  Mississippi,  one  of  the 
Atlantic  Steamship  Company's  line,  ready  to  push  out  for 
her  trip  below  within  half  an  hour. 

On  our  way  to  her  from  the  depot  we  were  besieged  by 
runners  of  rival  boats,  with  a  great  outcry  against  her  : 

"  She  has  tubular  boilers,  which  are  almost  certain  to  ex- 
plode before  reaching  New  Orleans."  '•  Do  you  want  to  take 
passage  on  such  a  boat,  when  a  few  hours'  delay  will  give 


22  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

you  boats  with  old-fashioned  boilers,  which  are  compara- 
tively safe  ?"  "  Better  take  your  coffin  with  you,"  said  one 
persistent  fellow,  "  if  you  go  on  that  boat.  Already  five  out 
of  fourteen  of  the  tubular  boiler  boats,  belonging  to  this  line, 
have  exploded  their  boilers  within  a  few  months,  and  each 
one  of  these  explosions  has  been  attended  with  fearful  loss 
of  life  and  property."  "  Do  you  want  to  enter  the  jaws  of 
death  ?     If  so,  this  boat  is  your  opportunity." 

This  and  similar  talk  filled  our  ears  until  we  had  actually 
crossed  the  gang-plank  and  were  on  the  boat  itself. 

We  of  course  thought  it  all  stuff,  if,  indeed,  we  thought 
any  thing  about  it  at  the  time,  except  to  feel  annoyed  at 
the  persistence  of  the  fellows  ;  but  after  we  had  been  out 
an  hour,  something  recalled  the  incident,  and,  on  inquiry, 
we  learned  that  the  runners  had  for  once  told  the  truth. 

Then  we  remembered  how  but  recently  the  wives  of  two 
of  our  townsmen  had  met  with  watery  graves  while  on 
their  return  trip  from  visiting  the  husband  of  one  of  them, 
who  was  then  a  cotton-planter  near  Helena,  and  how  un- 
usually sad  the  event  was,  in  that  neither  of  their  bodies 
could  ever  be  found.  The  accident  in  which  they  were  in- 
volved had  resulted  in  great  loss  of  life,  but  of  course  these 
two  cases,  being  those  of  our  own  town's-people,  had  come 
home  to  us,  so  to  speak.  I  remembered  how  the  almost 
crazed  husbands  had  the  river  dragged  for  miles  above  and 
below  the  point  where  the  accident  occurred,  and  offered 
large  rewards  for  the  recovery  of  the  bodies,  and  I  also  re- 
membered how,  when  we  had  visited  our  cemetery  but 
recently  I  had  seen  newly  cut  names  on  the  family  tomb  of 
each  of  the  bereaved  husbands,  with  the  inscription  :  "  Sa- 
cred to  the  memory  of  ,  the  victim  of  a  steamboat 

explosion  on  the  Mississippi  river,  Dec,  1865." 

On  further  inquiry,  I  learned  that  the  ill-fated  boat  was 
one  of  the  same  line  we  were  traveling  on,  and,  like  it,  had 
tubular  boilers  ! 


DOWN   THE   MISSISSIPPI   RIVER — A   GREAT    FRIGHT.        23 

Thus  the  noisy  runners  had  but  stated  the  truth  to  us, 
which  our  Western  stubbornness  would  not  allow  us  to 
heed! 

But  we  had,  with  others,  paid  our  passage  money,  and 
were  in  for  it.  I  scanned  the  face  of  the  Captain  closely. 
There  was  no  trace  of  apprehension  in  it.  I  looked  around 
among  the  passengers,  particularly  those  who  bore  evidence 
of  bcinc:  veterans  in  steamboat  travel — some  were  chattini; 
pleasantly,  others  were  engaged  in  card-playing,  many 
patronizing  the  bar,  all  apparently  at  ease.  Surely  these 
people  must  know  the  situation,  and  if  the  danger  of  an 
explosion  were  indeed  so  great,  they  would  not  be  so  calm 
and  collected,  I  reasoned. 

I  tried  also  to  comfort  myself  with  the  thought  that 
after  all  these  explosions  might  not  be  the  fault  of  the 
tubular  boilers,  but  the  result  of  unaccountable  circum- 
stances ;  or  they  might  be  attributed  to  careless  captains 
or  heedless  enc-ineers. 

Our  Captain,  we  were  told,  had  been  on  the  Mississippi 
river  twenty  years,  and  never  had  an  accident,  and  our 
engineer  was  said  to  be  A  No.  1.  Perhaps  I  was  needlessly 
alarmed.  I  would  try  and  quiet  myself  But,  as  a  meas- 
ure of  precaution,  I  would  get  a  berth  as  far  away  from  the 
boiler  as  possible.  The  rear  or  front  part  of  the  boat 
Avould  put  me  in  the  outskirts  of  the  danger,  so  to  speak, 
in  case  of  explosion,  and  I  would  make  a  critical  examina- 
tion of  the  life-preserver  in  my  room,  to  see  that  it  was  all 
right,  and  have  it  where  I  could  reach  it  instantly  in  the 
event  of  danger,  even  at  the  dead  hour  of  night. 

But  either  because  the  boat  was  crowded,  or  the  clerk 
was  stubborn,  my  state-room  was  directly  over  the  boiler, 
and  the  steam  whistle  pipe  went  up  through  it.  In  tem- 
perature, it  was  about  a  hundred  Fahrenheit.  No  amount 
of  expostulation  would  effect  a  change,  so  there  was  noth- 
ing left  but  to  submit. 

An  advertisement  posted  in  my  room  gave  this  informa- 


24  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

tion  :  "  The  doors  and  shutters  lift  from  their  hinges,  and 
in  case  of  wreck  are  to  be  taken  off  and  used  as  floats." 

But  what  use  was  life-preserver,  or  door,  or  shutter,  in 
case  of  explosion,  to  one  directly  over  the  boiler?  Those 
in  the  rear  or  front  might  live  to  make  a  struggle  for  the 
shore  with  them,  but  as  for  me,  explosion  sealed  my  doom. 

I  felt  ever  so  faintly,  at  that  moment,  like  being  back  in 
our  drug-store,  with  no  Dobson  scheme  to  divert  me,  but 
it  was  only  the  weakness  of  an  instant,  and  I  at  once  ujd- 
braided  myself  for  the  thought.  What  had  Dobson's 
scheme  to  do  with  tubular  boilers  ?  They  were  the  inci- 
dents of  travel,  and  were  just  as  likely  to  be  encountered 
on  a  journey  of  pleasure  as  one  of  business. 

Thus  reasoning,  I  dropped  off  to  sleep.  But  I  was  not  to 
be  allowed  to  get  through  the  night  without  disturbance. 
I  was  suddenly  awakened  by  a  fearful  noise.  Something 
seemed  to  be  screeching  up  through  my  state-room  with 
the  force  of  a  hundred  horse-power.  My  first  thought  was 
of  an  explosion,  and  as  I  listened  an  instant  my  ears  were 
filled  with  a  terrific  noise,  as  of  rushing  steam.  Yes,  it 
was  an  explosion.  My  time  had  come.  In  a  twinkle  I 
would  be  spinning  in  the  air,  perhaps  torn  to  fragments. 
I  frantically  clasped  the  door  and  my  life-preserver,  when 
the  whistle  of  the  boat  sounded  hoarsely  over  my  head,  fol- 
lowed immediately  by  the  second  and  third.  It  was  all 
explained  when  I  could  gather  my  thoughts  sufficiently  to 
remember  that  the  steam  whistle  pipe  passed  up  directly 
through  my  room,  as  already  noted. 

If  the  clerk  had  laid  a  plot  to  give  me  a  fright,  he  had 
certainly  succeeded,  and  to  this  day  I  do  not  hear  of  a 
steamboat  explosion  without  a  shudder  at  the  horror  I  ex- 
perienced during  the  moment  I  have  just  attempted  to 
describe. 

I  had  another  fright,  by  what  the  Captain  told  me  next 
morning  was  the  blowing  out  of  the  mud-drums  by  the  aid 


TOPICS   AND   CHARACTERS   BY   THE   WAY.  25 

of  steam.  Any  one  hearing  this  noise  for  the  first  time 
can  not  fail  to  be  startled  by  it. 

It  seems  my  fears  were  not  groundless,  for  two  months 
later  this  boat  did  actually  explode  its  boilers,  and  the  poor 
Captain  fell  a  victim  to  his  first  and  last  accident. 

The  company  continued  to  lose  their  tubular  boiler  boats, 
until  at  last,  forced  by  an  indignant  public,  and  a  convic- 
tion that  the  fault  was  in  the  boilers,  they  had  them  taken 
out,  and  old-fashioned  ones  put  in  their  places. 

This  attempt  to  introduce  tubular  boilers  in  the  muddy 
waters  of  the  Mississippi,  which  had  resulted  so  disastrously 
to  human  life  and  property,  was  then  abandoned,  let  us 
hope,  forever. 


CHAPTEE  YII. 

TOPICS   AND   CHARACTERS   BY    THE   WAY. 

The  popular  topic  on  the  steamboat  was  plantation 
labor. 

''  Will  the  black  people  work,  now  they  are  free  ?" 

Most  of  the  passengers  were  either  Southerners  or  South- 
ern sympathizers,  and  they,  as  well  as  the  officers  of  the 
boat,  who  were  never  slow  to  speak  their  minds — always, 
we  noticed,  chiming  in  with  the  Southern  view — loudly  as- 
serted there  was  no  work  in  the  negroes,  except  under  the 
overseer's  lash.  When  we  reached  Memphis,  and  saw  the 
landing  lined  with  them,  warming  themselves  under  the 
grateful  rays  of  a  January  sun,  apparently  without  occu- 
pation, the  scene  was  pointed  to  as  the  complete  verifica- 
tion of  this  statement. 

"  Why  do  n't  they  go  to  the  country,  if  there  is  any  work 
in  them  ?"  said  the  skeptics.     "  There  is  a  crying  necessity 


26  A    YEAR    OF    WRECK. 

for  them  on  the  plantations,  with  the  promise  of  good 
wages." 

Some  one  in  the  crowd  replied  :  "  They  're  waiting  for 
that  mule  and  the  forty  acres  of  land  the  Yankee  gover'- 
ment  has  promised  them." 

The  author  of  the  remark  was  a  person  of  swarthy  hue, 
bullet  head,  small  round  coal-black  eye,  thin  lip,  with  the 
faintest  shadow  of  a  mustache,  spare  in  figure,  and  appar- 
ently about  thirty-five.  He  wore  no  vest,  as  if  the  better 
to  display  a  showy  shirt-front,  and  his  pantaloons  were 
held  in  place  by  a  broad  belt,  which  was  fastened  with  a 
gilt  clasp,  on  which  were  the  letters  "  0.  S.  A."  The 
stranger  was  in  the  act  of  hitching  up  his  jmntaloons, 
which  operation  disclosed  what  looked  very  much  like  the 
handle  of  a  knife  peeping  above  the  belt's  rim;  and  as  he 
turned  around,  an  instant  later,  a  gust  of  wind  blew  aside 
the  tails  of  his  coat,  disclosing  a  pair  of  huge  pistols. 

His  feet  were  very  small  (he  wore  his  pantaloons  in  his 
boots,  as  if  the  better  to  display  them).  The  heels  of  his 
boots  were  as  tiny  as  a  woman's,  and  actually  looked  over- 
loaded by  the  weight  of  the  spurs  which  were  fastened  to 
them.  These  spurs  had  ugly  saw-teeth  wheels,  fully  as 
large  as  a  silver  dollar,  and  under  them  were  miniature 
bells,  which  jingled  whenever  he  moved  a  foot.  When  he 
was  not  hitching  up  his  pantaloons,  he  was  pulling  at  his 
little  farce  of  a  mustache,  as  if  trying  to  hurry  it  up. 

He  also  had  a  way  of  glancing  over  his  shoulder,  and 
when  in  this  act  his  eye  would  sometimes  betray  fear, 
sometime  hatred,  as  if  he  either  expected  to  be  pursued  or 
had  left  behind  him  some  deadly  foe.  Occasionally,  when 
casting  these  furtive  glances  behind,  there  would  gleam 
across  his  brigandish  features  an  expression  which  looked 
like  a  determination  to  go  back  and  have  it  out  with  some 
one,  and  then  his  hand  would  quickly  find  itself  under  his 
coat,  as  if  searching  for  something.  This  would  always 
be  followed  instantly  by  a  pallor,  as  if  this  determination 


TOPICS    AND   CHARACTERS   BY    THE    WAY.  27 

involved  great  danger.  Ho  made  the  remark  which  at- 
tracted my  attention  with  a  sneer,  which  had  not  left  his 
face  when  my  eyes  rested  on  him. 

He  was  a  new-comer,  having  taken  passage  at  Memphis, 
accompanied  by  a  man  who  was  in  every  way  his  striking 
contrast.  I  had  noticed  the  two  while  they  were  paying 
their  fare  at  the  clerk's  desk,  and  had  instinctively  ex- 
claimed to  Dobson,  "  David  and  Goliah  !" 

The  "  Goliah"  was  indeed  a  very  large  man,  weighing 
not  a  pound  less  than  three  of  his  companion.  Every 
thing  about  him  was  simply  enormous.  Looking  at  his 
broadcloth  coat,  which  was  frock,  had  a  very  long  tail,  a 
high  collar  (which  had  a  rim  of  at  least  two  inches  of 
grease  on  it),  and  flowing  sleeves,  one  would  have  said  it  had 
consumed  but  little  less  than  a  roll  of  cloth.  If  any  thing 
had  been  left,  it  had  certainly  been  consumed  in  his  pan- 
taloons, which,  like  every  thing  else  about  him,  had  a  baggy 
appearance.  His  head  was  surmounted  by  a  shock  of  hair, 
which  was  allowed  to  grow  long,  and  which  could  only  be 
kept  under  any  sort  of  discipline  by  the  most  liberal  use 
of  grease.  When  we  first  saw  him  he  was  evidently  fresh 
from  the  hands  of  the  barber,  and  his  locks  had  been 
tucked  under,  and  plastered  down  with  water  and  grease, 
until  they  formed  a  huge  roll. 

Every  thing  about  his  face  was  two  sizes  above  the  ordi- 
nary, except  his  nose,  which  was  three  sizes.  Starting  out 
from  the  skirt  of  his  hair  was  a  pale  rim  of  red,  which 
gradually  deepened,  until  centering  in  his  enormous  nose 
it  had  all  the  color  and  seedy  appearance  of  a  dead-ripe 
strawberry.  His  cheeks  and  double  chin  hung  down  in 
flabby  folds,  and  the  barber's  soap  had  brought  out  the 
blotches  on  his  face,  giving  it  somewhat  the  appearance  of 
newly-polished  mahogany. 

Looking  at  him  from  the  rear,  one  would  involuntarily 
think  of  a  huge  statue,  which  had  in  some  way  got  down 
from  its  pedestal.     Looking  at  him  from  the  fi*ont,  one 


28  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

would  exclaim :  "  What  a  living  monument  to  intemper- 
ance." 

He  was  being  greeted  by  the  Captain,  who  gave  him  the 
title  of  "  General,"  with  the  most  fulsome  praise  as  to  how 
well  he  was  looking,  and  with  inquiry  how  long  he  had 
been  in  Memphis,  etc.,  when  his  companion  gave  expression 
to  the  remark  I  have  just  quoted. 

He  slapped  him  on  the  shoulder — causing  him  to  start 
with  a  half  frightened,  half  defiant  air,  as  if  his  imaginary 
enemy  had  come  upon  him,  after  all  his  watching,  unex- 
pectedly— and  exclaimed,  with  a  hoarse  laugh  : 

"  Good  for  you,  Southland.  From  the  experience  we  've 
had  in  Memphis,  'mong  them  niggers,  tryin'  to  git  'em  to 
go  home  with  us,  and  gitting  nary  a  one,  I  reckon  you  're 
'bout  right." 

"No,  sah,  the  Chinee's  the  man  for  us;  a  free  nigger 
is  no  possible  'count  for  nothin'.  Ey  'n  by,  when  the  Yan- 
kee government  gits  'nough  of  their  cussed  freedom,  we  '11 
have  our  niggers  back  ag'in ;  till  then  I  'm  goin'  for  the 
Chinee."  And  on  that  sentiment,  the  "  General "  invited 
all  hands  to  take  a  drink. 


CHAPTEK  YIII. 


DRAM   DRINKING. 


Hf-       From  what  I  had  already  seen,  much  drinking  was  the 
'      custom  of  the  country,  and  for  any  one  to  decline  when 

invited  evoked  at  least  a  broad  stare  from  the  bystanders, 

if  it  did  not  actually  give  offense. 

The  General,  looking  at  me,  said  :  "  Come,  sah,"  and  so 

I  marched  up  with  the  rest  to  the  bar,  which  was  in  the 


DRAM   DRINKING.  29 

front  of  the  boat,  on  the  side  opposite  the  office,  and,  as  on 
all  Mississippi  river  steamers,  the  most  prominent  feature. 

The  bar,  like  every  thing  else,  pandered  to  the  Southern 
sentiment; — a  large  engraving  of  Eobert  E.  Lee  was  the 
first  object  that  met  the  eye  in  the  back-ground.  Directly 
in  front  of  this  was  arranged  the  row  of  bottles  containing 
the  various  liquors,  and  on  each  bottle  was  a  highly-wrought 
picture  of  some  one  of  the  Southern  Generals  in  full  uni- 
form . 

"■  Name  your  drinks,"  said  "  Goliah  ;  "  and  in  the  same 
breath,  looking  at  the  bar-keeper,  called  out  "  whisky 
toddy,"  at  the  same  time  drawing  his  hand  across  his 
mouth,  as  if  preparing  that  receptacle  for  the  rich  treat  in 
store  for  it. 

You  would  have  said  the  party  were  the  veriest  epicures, 
from  the  different  kinds  of  mixtures  they  ordered,  and  how 
the  bar-keeper  remembered  them  all  was  a  wonder. 

Southland  called  for  a  "  whisky  straight ;  "  so,  when  the 
bar-keeper  looked  at  me,  I  repeated  : 

"  Whisky  straight." 

But  for  the  life  of  me,  I  did  not  know  what  a  whisky 
straight  was,  although  I  knew,  of  course,  it  must  have 
whisky  in  it.  It  was  all  a  venture,  however.  My  impulse 
was,  to  order  lemonade,  but,  remembering  the  season,  and 
fearing  this  might  make  the  party  stare  worse  than  to  de- 
cline altogether,  I  said  : 

"  Whisky  straight." 

Two  empty  glasses  and  two  glasses  half  full  of  ice-water, 
with  a  bottle,  were  set  before  the  two  patrons  of  whisky 
straight.  What  to  do  with  them  I  never  could  have  told, 
so  I  resolved  to  imitate,  and  when  Southland  poured  out 
a  half  tumblerful  from  the  bottle,  which  I  noticed  bad  on 
it  the  likeness  of  Stonewall  Jackson,  I  followed  and  poured 
out  half  a  glassful. 

He  raised  his  glass  to  his  lips  and  swallowed  its  contents 
as  if  it  were  nectar.     I  did  the  same  with  the  utmost  non- 


30  A    TEAR   or   WRECK. 

chalance,  flattering  myself  I  was  coming  off  with  credit ; 
but,  instead  of  nectar,  to  me  it  was  rather  liquid  fire,  and 
I  gasped  for  breath. 

Southland  deliberately  took  up  his  ice-water,  and  treated 
himself  to  a  couple  of  swallows ;  I  seized  mine,  and  fran- 
tically attempted  to  quench  the  fire  raging  within  me  with 
its  full  contents. 

Conscious  that  my  strange  conduct  had  attracted  atten- 
tion, and  with  the  fire  in  me  only  half  quenched,  I  under- 
took to  divert  the  same  ;  toying  with  the  bottle,  I  inquired 
of  the  bar-keeper : 

"  Is  this  Monongahela  whisky  ?  " 

He  instantly  assumed  an  indignant  air,  and  replied  : 

"  No,  sah  ;  we  do  n't  have  any  Yankee  whisky  on  this 
boat ! " 

I  had  put  my  foot  into  it.  While  the  bar-keeper  was 
yet  fuming  at  what  he  called  an  insinuation  that  he  should 
have  Yankee  whisky  in  his  bar — the  bystanders  manifestly 
in  sympathy  with  him — I  was  still  toying  with  the  bottle 
which  had  furnished  me  the  whisky  straight,  and  which 
the  bar-keeper  said,  with  a  flourish,  was  good  old  Bourbon 
from  Kentucky.  Judge  my  astonishment  when  I  discov- 
ered the  imprint,  "  Pittsburgh  Glass  Company  Manufac- 
tory," not  only  on  the  bottle,  but  on  the  border  of  the  pic- 
ture of  Stonewall  Jackson  itself. 

I  said  nothing,  remembering  to  have  read  of  bar-room 
scenes  on  the  Mississippi  river,  but  I  was  strongly  inclined 
to  display  my  discovery  for  the  discomfiture  of  the  bar- 
keeper, who,  even  if  he  was  not  selling  "  Yankee  "  whisky, 
was  selling  whisky  from  "  Yankee  "  bottles. 

The  taste  or  quality  of  the  whisky,  or  both  perhaps,  had 
disappointed  me,  and  the  quantity  I  took  soon  set  my  head 
to  whirling,  until  Dobson  was  fain  to  suggest,  in  view  of 
the  fact  of  my  having  been  disturbed  in  my  rest  the  night 
previous,  I  had  better  take  a  nap,  which  I  did  in  my  boots, 
but  not  until  I  had  dimly  seen  David  and  Goliah —  or,  to 


MORNING   SCENES.  31 

tell  the  truth  in  my  condition,  a  dozen  Davids  and  Goli- 
ahs — visit  the  bar  twice  within  eight  minutesby  the  watch. 
It  was  twenty-four  hours  before  that  first  whisky  straight 
got  out  of  my  head,  and  I  resolved,  during  that  time,  that 
this  one  custom  of  the  South,  which  I  had  then  seen  but  a 
glimpse  of,  but  which  I  afterwards  learned  had  slain  more 
than  plague,  pestilence,  famine,  and  battle  in  that  region, 
should  never  claim  me  as  its  victim. 


CHAPTEE  IX. 

MOENINQ   SCENES. 

The  third  day  out  from  Cairo,  found  us  below  Helena, 
and  desiring  to  see  as  much  of  this  new  life  as  possible,  I 
was  up  betimes. 

The  passengers  came  out  of  their  state-rooms,  one  after 
another,  and,  with  very  few  exceptions,  went  directly  to 
the  bar  and  ordered  a  whisky  cocktail.  Some  called  it  "  a 
morning  nip,"  others  "  an  eye-opener."  '^  David  and  Go- 
liah  "  tumbled  out  of  the  same  state-room,  and  took  as 
nearly  a  bee-line  to  the  bar  as  their  habitual  state  of  semi- 
intoxication,  and  the  shaking  of  the  boat,  would  permit — 
the  former  seeming,  in  his  greed  for  drink,  to  be  oblivious 
for  the  moment  of  his  imaginary  foe  in  the  rear,  never  once 
looking  over  his  shoulder,  but  still  continuing  to  either 
hitch  up  his  pantaloons  or  tug  at  his  mustache. 

They  ordered — "the  usual." 

But  I  noticed,  however  indefinite  the  order,  the  bar- 
keeper seemed  to  understand  it  as  all  meaning  the  same 
thing,  and  so  it  was,  with   the  exception  of  a  couple  of 


32  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

"  swell  "  looking  chaps,  who  turned  out  to  be  three-card- 
monte  dealers,  who  ordered  "  soda  cocktails." 

It  was  a  study  to  witness  this  morning's  operation.  1 
had  seen,  in  my  experience  of  country  life  in  the  North, 
the  sturdy  farmers  taking  their  long  and  invigorating 
draughts  of  water  fresh  from  the  well,  the  first  thing  after 
they  were  up  in  the  morning ;  that  seemed  perfectly  natu- 
ral;  I  had  myself  enjoyed  it  with  the  keenest  relish, 
drinking  from  the  gourd  or  tin-cup  hung  either  at  the  well- 
side,  or  over  the  bench  just  outside  the  kitchen  door.  But 
here  was  a  different  scene.  There  was  the  silver  cooler  at 
the  head  of  the  boat,  there  was  the  silver  cup  from  which 
to  drink,  but  no  one  visited  this  fountain  of  health.  In 
this  morning's  hour,  cooler  and  cup  were  simply  show  fig- 
ures, if  they  were  not  indeed  something  to  be  shunned, 
while  the  bar,  with  its  poisonous  drinks,  was  the  one  recog- 
nized attraction. 

The  visitors  to  this  shrine  would  go  up  in  shoals.  There 
seemed  to  be  a  general  understanding  that  it  was  not  the 
thing  to  drink  alone.  Once  only  during  the  morning  was 
this  rule  varied. 

Some  would  take  their  cocktails  much  as  a  hungry  dog 
snatches  at  a  bone,  others  would  sip  it  daintily  as  if  they 
wished  it  might  last  forever.  Sometimes  the  countenance 
would  light  up  as  if  the  draught  had  infused  new  vigor, 
and  sometimes  it  would  give  the  face  the  expression  given 
by  a  nauseous  dose  of  medicine.  But  it  always  seemed  to 
have  the  effect  of  stiffening  the  back-bone.  After  the 
drink,  you  would  see  the  person  either  pull  his  vest  down 
or  his  pantaloons  up,  or  shake  his  coat  collar,  or  straighten 
up,  or  make  some  little  manuever  which  plainly  said, 
"  now,  I  am  all  right." 

While  "  David  and  Goliah's  "  cocktails  were  being  mixed, 
the  latter  said,  as  if  indulging  in  reminiscence : 

''Well,  Southland,  times  ar'  n't  as  they  used  to  be  'fo'  the 


MORNING   SCENES. 


33 


wa'.  Then  we  used  to  drink  champagne  cocktails  all  the 
way  to  New  Orleans;  now  we  have  to  put  up  with  whisky 
cocktails." 

"Yes,"  replied  Southland,  swallowing  his  drink,  "  that's 
what  the  nidicals  of  the  No'th  have  done  for  us." 

And  then  he  glanced  over  his  shoulder  more  fiercely 
than  ever,  while  his  coal-black  eyes  almost  emitted  sparks 
of  fire,  and  his  hand  seemed  determined  to  find  that  some- 
thing under  his  coat. 

"  We  ought  to  love  this  Yankee  gover'ment,  we  had," 
said  he. 

Again  glancing  over  his  shoulder,  1  noticed  a  changed 
expression.  "  Never  mind,"  he  continued,  -'Andy  Johnson 
is  with  us  now.  He  's  gone  back  on  the  cussed  vadicals, 
and  through  him  we  '11  git  all  we  lost  by  the  wa'." 

"I  reckon  you're  'bout  right  thar;  Andy's  showin' 
them  fellers  up  No'th  a  sure  'nuif  Yankee  trick.  If  he  '11 
take  away  that  cussed  nigger  bureau,  and  the  Yankee 
troops  at  its  back,  we  '11  show  the  nigger  what  freedom  is." 
"  He  '11  do  it,  sure,"  said  Southland.  "  He  says  he  's  a 
Moses,  and  when  Andy  Johnson  says  a  thing,  he  means  it, 
he  does." 

Now  the  breakfast  bell  sounded,  and  here  we  found  a 
feature  of  Southern  steamboat  travel  that  was  commend- 
able :  the  utter  absence  of  any  rushing,  or  pushing,  or 
scrambling  for  seats  at  the  table.  Not  a  passenger  on  the 
boat  was  in  a  hurry  to  take  his  meal.  It  seemed  to  be  un- 
derstood that  there  was  an  abundance  of  every  thing 
cooked,  and  that  plenty  of  time  would  be  given  to  eat  it. 
Here  was  an  example  for  steamboats  and  railroads  else- 
where, which  they  would  do  well  to  follow.  We  were  as 
free  from  annoyance  as  we  should  have  been  at  some  first- 
class  hotel  or  restaurant,  where  meals  are  served  at  all 
hours,  thus  rendering  any  hurry  or  scramble  unnecessary. 
The  steward's  manner  plaimly  said  to  you,  "  gentlemen, 
2* 


3-4  A    YEAR    OP   WRECK. 

take  your  own  time,"  and  the  waiters  bad  an  easy  gait  and 
an  air  which  assured  you  that  there  was  no  lack  of  good 
things  behind,  but  that  the  late  comers  would,  if  possible, 
be  better  served  than  the  early  ones. 

.  I  placed  my  ticket  beside  my  plate  at  the  first  meal  I 
took  on  the  boat,  but  no  one  called  for  it,  no  one  offered  to 
"  punch  "  it,  and  so  I  stowed  it  away  and  have  it  yet  as  a 
memento  of  that  eventful  journey.  Indeed,  there  was  an 
utter  absence  of  every  thing  which  would  have  a  tendency 
to  remind  you  that  you  were  paying  for  what  you  got,  a 
complete  absence  of  any  surveillance,  which  rather  made 
you  feel  that  you  were  a  complimentary  guest ;  at  least 
you  felt  that  whether  you  paid  or  not  seemed  to  be  a  mat- 
ter of  perfect  indifference  to  the  officers  of  the  boat. 


CHAPTER  X. 


"  DAVID    AND    GOLIAH." 


The  steward  was  an  inveterate  gossip.  He  knew  every- 
body and  his  antecedents. 

The  big  man  we  have  nick-named  ''  Groliah  "  was  Gen- 
eral Parker,  of  Louisiana.  He  was  an  extensive  planter, 
and  had,  notwithstanding  his  siz^e,  won  his  title  of  General 
by  active  field  service  in  the  Confederate  army. 

He  was  an  enormous  drinker,  and  this  he  had  been  as 
long  as  the  steward  could  remember.  Even  before  the 
war  he  was  one  of  the  inveterates,  but  then  drinking  was 
done  in  a  more  aristocratic  style.  In  those  days  cham- 
pagne was  the  rule,  and  it  used  to  run,  on  the  steamboats, 
free  as  water.  The  steward  had  heard  that  General  Parker 
drank  a  barrel  of  whisky  once  since  the  war  in  sixty  days. 


"DAVID   AND   GOLIAH."  35 

He  was  drinking,  at  least  half  a  gallon  a  day  now ;  so 
this  statement  did  not  surprise  me  in  the  least. 

"  Is  he  married  ?" 

The  steward  looked  cautiously  around,  to  see  if  any  one 
was  in  hearing  distance,  and  then  replied  in  an  undertone  : 
"  No  ;  but  he  has  quite  a  family  of  children  by  one  of  his 
slave  women." 

I  expressed  great  astonishment  at  this,  but  the  steward 
said,  with  a  shrug  of  the  shoulder  :  "  You  '11  have  to  get 
used  to  that,  if  you  live  in  the  South." 

Southland  had  been,  for  the  most  part,  a  guerrilla  during 
the  war,  though  for  a  short  time  he  had  acted  as  conscript 
oflScer.     His  record  was  appalling. 

He  had  hunted  conscrij^ts  with  bloodhounds,  the  same 
class  of  dogs  that  had  been  used  to  bring  back  runaway 
slaves  ;  and  in  the  section  of  country  where  he  had  carried 
on  this  inhuman  practice  he  was  known  as  "  dog  Southland.'' 

It  was  in  a  region  which  had  outwardly  given  its  adhe- 
sion to  the  Confederate  government,  but  where,  secretly, 
Union  sentiments  were  entertained  by  the  people.  They 
had  voted  almost  solidly  against  secession,  and  when  the 
war  actually  came  on  had  been  slow  to  volunteer.  It  was 
from  their  class  in  the  South  that  the  rank  and  file  of  the 
army  was  to  come — that  known  as  the  "  poor  white  trash," 
which  the  steward  explained  to  mean  the  non-slaveholding 
laboring  class.  Here  Southland  had  been  put  to  work. 
The  people  had  their  favorite  hiding-places,  and  would 
signal  his  coming,  and  fly  to  their  retreats.  So,  when 
Southland  would  ride  up  to  a  house  and  inquire  for  the 
man,  he  was  not  at  home.  Then  he  would  put  his  hounds 
on  the  track  of  the  absent  one,  and  in  this  way  he  got 
many  recruits,  some  of  them  coming  into  camp  torn  and 
bleeding.  Once,  while  on  his  rounds,  he  was  met  by  the 
usual  answer,  "  not  at  home, "-when,  riding  on  a  short  dis- 
tance, he  found  his  dogs  '-trailed"  to  the  foot  of  a  tree, 
howling   forth   their   bloodthirsty   peals.      Hiding   in   its 


36  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

branches  he  espied  a  boy.  He  deliberately  raised  his  shot- 
gun from  the  pommel  of  his  saddle,  and  emptied  the  con- 
tents of  one  barrel  in  the  little  fellow's  head,  and  he  fell  a 
corpse  in  the  midst  of  the  pack  of  hounds,  which  instantly 
set  upon  him,  tearing  the  flesh  from  his  body. 

Southland  ordered  the  dogs  off,  and  then  told  one  of  his 
men  to  hand  him  "  the  little  squirrel." 

"  You  '11  never  watch  out  for  your  daddy  ag'in,"  said  he, 
as  he  raised  his  shot-gun,  so  that  the  man  could  throw  the 
mangled  corpse  over  the  pommel  of  his  saddle. 

"  Now,  I  '11  take  you  home  to  your  mammy."  And  then 
he  galloped  off.  Eeaching  the  front  gate,  he  threw  the  ob- 
ject of  his  passion  over  into  the  yard,  saying  to  the  mother, 
who  rushed  to  grasp  her  little  one,  mangled  by  the  teeth 
of  the  dogs  almost  beyond  recognition,  "  There,  take  your 
brat,  and  never  try  hiding  your  husband  ag'in." 

This  was  one  of  the  numerous  stories  of  horror  which 
the  steward  told  me  about  this  man. 

Since  the  war  he  had  shot  a  man  in  the  back,  a  brave 
Confederate  army  oflScer,  and  one  in  every  way  a  gentle- 
man, as  he  was  going  past  him,  without  any  more  warning 
than  calling  out  to  him,  "  Look  out,  there,"  and  the  next 
instant  firing — all  over  a  dispute  involving  a  few  dollars  ! 

I  no  longer  wondered  that  a  man  with  such  a  record 
should  be  constantly  glancing  over  his  shoulder. 

There  were  others  on  the  boat  besides  the  steward  who 
seemed  to  be  perfectly  familiar  with  Southland's  record, 
and  yet  he  was  a  hale  fellow  among  them  all.  The  worst 
that  was  said  of  him  was,  "  That  dare  devil ;"  and  in  speak- 
ing of  one  of  his  numerous  murders,  it  was,  "  Poor  fellow ; 
he  deserved  a  better  fate."  Kot  a  word  in  condemnation 
of  the  murderer  ! 

Was  this  Southern  society  ?  It  certainly  was  Southern 
steamboat  society. 

To  say  nothing  of  his  crimes  committed  in  the  name  of 
the  Confederacy,  here  was  an  acknowledged  murderer  run- 


AN   UNPLEASANT   DISCOVERY.  37 

ninsr  at  larcre!  From  his  manner  it  was  evident  that 
the  voice  of  nature,  his  conscience,  was  constantly  crying 
out  against  him,  and  yet  he  was  allowed  to  associate  with 
honest  and  innocent  men — his  deeds,  which  his  own  con- 
science were  thus  incessantly  condemning,  rather  the  sub- 
ject of  applause  in  the  section  of  country  where  they  had 
been  committed.  And  while  his  own  heart  was  pronounc- 
ing him  "guilty,"  neither  public  opinion  (at  least  as  in- 
dexed on  the  boat),  nor  court,  nor  jury,  were  rendering  any 
such  verdict.  This  man  was  not  merely  suspected  of  these 
crimes,  which  might  justify  a  suspension  of  public  opinion 
until  they  had  been  proved,  but  he  was  known  to  have 
committed  them,  and  yet  this  Southern  steamboat  society 
said  to  him:  "Eat  with  us,  drink  with  us,  you,  the  mur- 
derer— you,  the  slayer  of  men  and  children,  and  perhaps 
of  women — place  yourself  on  a  perfect  equality  with  us." 


CHAPTEB  XI. 

AN   UNPLEASANT   DISCOVERY. 

"We  were  not  long  in  finding  out  that  we  were  by  no 
means  the  only  persons  on  the  boat  seeking  a  location, 
and  it  was  said  that  both  the  rail  and  water  conveyances 
for  the  South  were  swarming  with  what  Goliah  termed 
"  Yankee  adventurers,"  who,  as  he  expressed  it,  "  are  com- 
ing down  South  to  buy  our  homes  right  out  from  under 
us,"  which  statement  Southland  confirmed,  saying  : 

"  That 's  so,  for  a  fact." 

On  our  boat,  among  others,  was  a  Mr.  Johnson,  from  In- 
diana, who  had  been  engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  en- 


38  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

gines  for  the  Southern  trade  before  the  war,  and  had,  he 
said,  a  large  amount  of  money  outstanding. 

He  at  first  gave  us  to  believe  that  he  was  making  the 
trip  to  try  and  collect  some  of  this  money,  but  finally  ac- 
knowledged that  he  intended  stopping  to  look  at  one  or 
two  plantations,  with  a  view  to  purchase,  and  that  he  had 
previously  dispatched  an  agent,  who  was  now  on  the  ground 
making  the  preliminary  examination. 

I  then  confided  to  him  that  we,  too,  were  on  our  way 
to  look  at  a  plantation,  with  a  view  to  purchase,  in  the  very 
neighborhood  he  had  mentioned,  and  told  him  the  name  of 
the  place.  I  noticed  he  gave  a  little  start,  and  immedi- 
ately pulled  out  a  memorandum-book,  which  he  consulted, 
exclaiming  : 

*'  One  of  the  two  plantations  my  agent  writes  about !" 

Here,  then,  was  likely  to  be  competition.  The  purchase 
of  the  Hebron  plantation  was  not,  after  all,  to  be  so  easily 
accomplished ! 

It  was  by  no  means  unlikely  that  it  would  slip  from  our 
grasp.  Johnson  had  his  agent  on  the  ground  ;  that  was  a 
great  advantage.  He  might,  for  aught  we  knew,  be  simply 
going  down  to  pay  over  the  purchase-money,  the  purchase 
itself  having  already  been  consummated  by  the  agent. 
From  remarks  which  he  dropj^ed,  and  from  his  general 
manner,  I  was  led  to  infer  that  he  had  the  most  amj)le 
means,  and  he  might  want  both  places. 

Fearing  it  to  be  so,  I  timidly  asked  him  this  question. 

"  No,  indeed,  I  have  no  idea  of  that.  If  I  buy  at  all,  it 
will  be  as  a  venture  for  some  friends  and  myself,  and  the 
agent  now  down  there  will  take  charge  of  the  place.  The 
fact  is,  the  purchase  will  be  made,  if  made  at  all,  as  much 
to  put  this  agent  in  the  way  of  making  money  as  any  thing. 
He  is  a  faithful  man,  and  has  been  in  our  employ  for  a 
long  time.     This  is  to  be  his  reward." 

All  this  was,  however,  simply  an  assurance  that  he  in- 
tended to  purchase  but  one  place.     Suppose  that  "  one  " 


AN    UNPLEASANT   DISCOVERY.  39 

should  turn  out  to  be  the  place  we  were  now  making  a 
journey  to  *'  view,"  and,  if  we  were  so  inclined,  to  possess- 
Nothing  could,  of  course,  prevent  us  from  "viewing"  it, 
but  it  would  probably  be  as  the  property  of  another. 

With  an  agent  who  was  now  "  on  the  ground,"  Johnson 
might,  beyond  a  doubt,  pluck  the  prize. 

Then,  too,  notwithstanding  his  assurance  that  he  had 
no  "  idea  "  of  purchasing  both  places,  suppose  this  "agent," 
who  possessed  the  unbounded  confidence  of  his  master, 
should,  as  was  not  unlikely,  have  some  discretionary  power, 
and  seeing  the  magnificent  financial  prospect,  and  fearing 
to  brook  delay,  should  actually  close  the  bargain  for  both 
places,  trusting  to  Johnson  to  ratify  the  same,  and,  from 
his  intimate  knowledge  of  his  employer,  knowing  that  he 
would  be  only  too  glad  to  do  so — that,  rather  than  blame 
him  for  the  purchase,  he  would  blame  him  if  he  allowed  the 
bargain  to  slip  from  him. 

So  there  was  a  poor  show  for  a  chance  to  test  the  "Dob- 
son  scheme,"  at  least  on  that  particular  plantation.  We 
might,  if  Johnson's  agent  should  only  close  for  one  of  the 
two  places,  take  the  other,  even  if  that  other  was  not  the 
one  Dobson  had  chosen ;  but  of  course  Dobson's  choice 
was  the  cream  of  the  neighborhood,  and  any  thing  else 
would  be  number  two.  What  a  pity  we  had  not  started  a 
month  earlier, — then  we  might  have  flanked  Johnson,  as  he 
was  now  likely  to  flank  us.  Well,  we  would  see  how  it 
ended.  I  might  be  borrowing  trouble.  And  in  this 
mood  I  said  good-night  to  Dobson,  who  assured  me  that 
the  morning  would  find  us  at  our  journey's  end. 

At  last  we  are  in  the  immediate  neighborhood  of  our 
Mecca.  But  neither  the  elements,  the  hour,  nor  my  feel- 
ings are  auspicious  of  a  favorable  impression. 

One  of  those  dense  fogs  is  settling  down  upon  the  coun- 
try, and  as  I  station  myself  upon  the  guards  to  watch  for 
the  landing,  it  seems  to  penetrate  every  pore  of  my  body. 
The  boat  is  constantly  sounding  its  fog-whistle,  and  ever 


40  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

and  anon  the  pilot's  bells  are  heard  conveying  their  mes- 
sages to  the  engineer  below,  telling  him  to  start  this  wheel, 
to  stop  that  one,  now  to  slow  down  on  both,  now  to  let  her 
drift,  etc. 

The  Captain  stands  at  his  post,  shading  his  eyes  with  one 
hand,  peering  into  the  distance  as  if  he  would  break  through 
the  mist,  and  holding  on  to  the  rope  of  his  bell  with  the 
other  hand,  ready  to  signal  at  an  instant  when  he  may  dis- 
cover danger  ahead. 

The  effort  to  land  a  boat  in  a  fog  is  in  itself  exciting,  but 
it  is  half  an  hour  before  day-break,  and  I  feel  dull  and 
sleepy ;  and  so,  while  the  officers  of  the  boat  are  all  on 
the  alert,  and  I  hear  the  sounding  of  the  whistles,  the 
ringing  of  bells,  and  all  the  attendant  commotion,  I 
shake  myself  closer  under  my  wrappings,  as  if  I  would 
shut  out  the  scene  ;  I  pull  my  collar  over  my  ears,  as  if  I 
would  close  them  from  the  sounds. 

Is  this  the  balmy  South  ?  Why,  this  cold  penetrates 
my  marrow,  and  then,  while  the  boat  is  still  struggling  in 
the  fog,  all  shivering,  I  again  enter  the  cabin  to  get  a  lit- 
tle of  its  warmth  before  stej^j^ing  on  the  shore. 

There  are  Southland  and  Parker  hanging  over  the  bar, 
guzzling,  guzzling  away  at  the  fiery  liquid.  There  are  the 
monte-dealers  plying  their  vocation  on  a  couple  of  Texas- 
looking  fellows,  and  there,  too,  is  the  inevitable  poker- 
party,  each  one  of  whose  faces  is  in  itself  a  study. 

I  pull  my  hat  over  my  eyes  to  shut  out  the  spectacle, 
and  then,  as  I  have  nothing  else  to  look  at,  I  look  within, 
and  in  my  mood  think  of  the  home  and  friends  I  have  left 
behind.  If  I  were  there  now  this  would  have  been  my 
weekly  whist-party  night.  Should  we  ever  find  here,  if  this 
were  to  be  our  home,  any  thing  that  could  take  the  place 
of  those  gatherings  of  choice  acquaintances  ? 

To-morrow  would  be  a  meeting  of  our  insurance  direc- 
tory. There  would  be  a  vacant  chair  in  a  board  of  which 
I  had  been  a  member  since  its  birth.     Would  those  solid 


AN   UNPLEASANT   DISCOVERY.  41 

men  have  a  moment's  thought  of  me,  who  had  stood  shoul- 
der to  shoulder  with  them  until  a  little  enterprise  had  be- 
come a  controling  one  in  its  line.  Then,  too,  there  was 
our  bank  dividend,  a  notice  of  which  I  had  seen  in  the 
morning  paper  the  day  we  left — "six  per  cent.,  semi- 
annual, payable  on  and  after  January  5th  "  (yesterday).  I 
had  been  looking  forward  to  be  in  the  board  of  directory 
of  this  bank  at  no  distant  day,  I  remembered. 

There  were  some  coupons,  State  and  United  States,  due 
the  1st  of  January,  which  in  my  absorption  in  the  "  Dob- 
son  scheme"  I  had  neglected  to  cut  off  and  place  in 
bank  for  collection.  They,  with  my  bank  dividend,  must 
sleep  until  my  return.  Should  we  ever  find  another  such 
pastor  as  the  one  to  whose  ministrations  we  had  long  been 
indebted  ?     Could  we  leave  the  old  family  physician  ? 

I  had  noticed,  in  the  Memphis  papers.  New  York  quota- 
tions, showing  the  sudden  fall  of  quinine.  Would  my 
partner  take  advantage  of  this,  and  lay  in  a  supply? 
And  so  my  thoughts  ran  on  until  they  drifted  back  to 
Johnson's  statement,  which  had  so  upset  me,  and  which 
was  really  at  the  bottom  of  my  present  slight  tinge  of  dis- 
gust. 

Yes,  if  I  were  only  certain  that  Johnson  was  not  in  our 
way,  I  might  be  happy,  despite  the  weather  or  the  hour. 

And  then  our  boat  struck  something,  and  Dobson  slap- 
ped me  on  the  shoulder,  saying : 

"  Wake  up,  Harding,  we  are  at  the  wharf" 


42  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 


CHAPTEE  XII. 

AT  THE  LANDING — FIRST    IMPRESSIONS. 

"VVe  crossed  the  stage  plank  to  the  wharf-boat,  by  the  light 
of  the  steamboat  torch,  and  were  cordially  greeted  by  a 
wide-awake  looking  personage,  lantern  in  hand,  saying  : 

'^  Glad  to  see  you,  gents  ;  walk  this  way — right  up  stairs. 
Plenty  of  room  ;  good  accommodations.  Take  seats,  gents, 
by  the  fire.  You,  Pompey !  take  the  gen'men's  kearpet 
bags.     Hurry  up  thar,  nigger.     Beds,  gents,  beds  ?  " 

Ko,  it  was  so  near  morning  it  was  hardly  worth  our 
while  to  go  to  bed ;  with  his  j)ermission  we  would  sit  by 
the  fire. 

^'  Certainly,  gents,  certainly.  Pompey,  make  a  rousin' 
fire  to  keep  the  gen'men  warm — lively,  nigger!  Breakfast 
at  seven,  gents  ;  good,  warm  breakfast.  Make  yourself 
perfectly  at  home,  gents,  perfectly  at  home.  Lively  times 
for  freight.  Lots  of  new  men  coming  into  the  country. 
That's  what  we  want :  the  more  the  merrier.  Plenty  o' 
land  here  ;  plenty  o'  niggers.  Yankee  capital,  and  Yankee 
enterprise  is  all  we  want.  Excuse  me,  gents.  This  is  my 
watch  ;  I  must  go  and  receive  the  freight." 

And  so  our  host  bustled  out,  saying  :  *'  You  nigger  !  don't 
let  the  gen'men  want  for  nothin'." 

We  made  out  the  wharf-boat  to  be  a  dismantled  steamboat, 
and  could  see  that  the  post-office  occupied  one  corner  of  the 
cabin.  The  host  had  spoken  of  "  good  accommodations," 
''  beds,"  and  "  breakfast,"  so  we  inferred  that  it  also  was 
serving  the  purpose  of  hotel.  The  host  soon  came  bluster- 
ing back.      Did  he  know  Jonathan  Hampson,  we  asked. 

He  knew  Gen.  Jonathan  Hampson,  late  of  the  Con- 
federate Senate  at  Eichmond. 


AT   THE    LANDING — FIRST   IMPRESSIONS.  43 

We  presumed  he  was  the  gentleman  we  wanted  to  see. 
Was  he  at  home  ? 

He  had  just  returned  from  a  two  weeks'  absence  in  New 
Orleans,  had  come  up  in  the  night,  and  had  gone  to  bed  on 
the  boat.  His  '•  boy  "  would  be  in  for  him  about  day  light ; 
he  would  bo  up  shortly. 

Oh,  I  thought,  Harapson  has  been  absent  for  two 
weeks  ;  Johnson's  agent  has  not  seen  him  then,  and  there 
is  an  even  chance  for  us. 

I  at  once  became  light-hearted,  and  the  "  Dobson 
scheme  "  again  assumed  its  original  mastery. 

While  I  was  yet  enjoying  the  thought,  a  cabin  door 
opened  and  a  fine-looking,  silvery-haired  old  gentleman 
stepped  out.  The  host  bustled  up  at  once,  exclaiming : 
"  Gents,  this  is^Gen.  Hampson,"  and,  looking  at  the  new- 
comers, he  continued  : 

"  General,  here  are  some  gen'men  who  have  been  inquir- 
ing for  you." 

Dobson  j)erformed  the  ceremony  of  introduction  on  our 
part  in  his  best  style,  and  in  turn  Gen.  Hampson  intro- 
duced our  host  as  '•  Capt.  Tyler,  late  of  the  Confederate 
army." 

Dobson  made  an  engagement  for  us  to  call  on  the  Gen- 
eral at  nine  that  morning  at  his  house,  a  mile  distant. 

"  I  would  send  for  you,  but  have  no  means  of  convey- 
ance whatever ;  you  will  have  to  make  your  way  out  to 
my  residence  as  best  you  can.  Once  there,  I  will  try  and 
mount  you  in  some  way  for  a  trip  to  the  Hebron  planta- 
tion." Then  the  General  asked  usif  our  journey  down  the 
river  had  been  pleasant.  Was  the  weather  cold  when  we 
left  the  North  ?  A  few  such  questions  made  up  the  sum 
total  of  the  conversation,  which  partook  of  the  dullness  of 
the  hour. 

Day  at  last  broke,  and  the  General  was  off.  As  the  host 
showed  him  to  the  door,  he  said  something  to  him  in  an 
undertone,  looking   in   our   direction,  and   I   caught  the 


44  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

words  "  favorable  impression,"  to  which  Capt.  Tyler  nod- 
ded a  reply,  in  turn  looking  at  us.  I  judged  it  to  be  a 
request  to  make  our  stay  pleasant,  and  to  do  what  he  could 
to  give  us  a  favorable  impression  of  the  country. 

It  was  plain  to  be  seen,  by  the  great  deference  Capt. 
Tyler  showed  the  General,  that  he  considered  him  an  im- 
portant personage,  and  as  the  morning  wore  on,  and  the 
village  loungers  dropped  in,  apparently  to  take  a  morning 
drink,  there  being  a  bar  on  board  which  they  generally 
patronized,  the  manner  in  which  they  all  sj)oke  of  him 
convinced  us  that  he  was  in  fact  the  chief  man  of  the 
neighborhood.  Caj^t.  Tyler  was  officious  in  introducing 
us  to  the  morning  callers.  It  was  quite  evident  that  the 
object  of  our  journey  was  well  understood.  For  aught  I 
could  see  we  were  welcome.  I  noticed  the  expression  of 
each  new  face  as  we  were  presented,  and  was  unable  to 
see  any  thing  that  looked  like  hostility.  We  had  expected 
a  cordial  enough  reception  on  the  part  of  Gen.  Hampson, 
as  we  had  a  letter  of  introduction  to  him.  He  was  orig- 
inally from  the  iNTorth,  and  received  his  education  there. 
Drinking  in  the  healthy  Northern  ideas  with  his  schooling, 
we  had  naturally  expected  to  find  a  man  with  liberal  views, 
and  with  no  particular  prejudices. 

If  there  was  to  be  any  hostility  toward  us,  I  thought  it 
would  come  from  the  native  Southerners — those  who  had 
never  seen  anything  of  the  North,  except  what  they  might 
have  observed  in  a  hurried  trip  through  it,  and  judged  of 
it  by  this,  and  the  sensation  newspaper  reports  which  they 
read.  Of  course,  wherever  we  found  a  man  who  had  been 
educated  in  the  Xorth,  as  I  knew  Gen.  Hampson  had, 
we  would  find  a  man  of  enlarged  ideas  and  views. 

True,  I  remembered  to  have  heard  it  said,  that  the  bit- 
terest men  in  the  South  were  those  of  Northern  birth  and 
education  ;  but  this  did  not  stand  to  reason,  and  so  I  had 
discarded  the  idea  as  unworthy  of  belief     However,  we 


AT   THE    LANDING — FIRST   IMPRESSIONS.  45 

would  have  a  chance  to  prove  this  statement  if  we  came 
South  to  live. 

Among  many  others,  we  were  introduced  to  two  gentle- 
men who  were  born,  educated  and  prepared  for  a  profes- 
sion— one  for  that  of  medicine  and  the  other  that  of  law — 
in  Boston.  Another,  whose  birth-place  was  New  York, 
had  drifted  South  after  his  maturity,  and,  by  a  lucky  mar- 
riage to  the  daughter  of  a  rich  planter,  had  become  a 
planter,  and  wealthy  himself. 

''  Keen  as  a  brier,"  Tyler  had  whispered  in  my  ear  after 
this  introduction. 

The  doctor  said,  laughing  :  "  I  hope  you  won't  think  any 
the  worse  of  me  on  account  of  my  birth-place.  1  have 
long  since  been  forgiven  for  that !  " 

They  had  all  lived  in  the  South  for  over  twenty  years, 
and  I  could  see  at  a  glance  that  they  were  the  leaders  in 
their  little  circle. 

If  my  theory  was  correct  that  a  Northern  education 
made  liberal  minds,  we  had  certainly  struck  a  liberal 
neighborhood,  and  at  this,  my  first  glance,  I  could  see 
nothing  to  the  contrary. 

Capt.  Tyler  overpowered  us  with  attention,  and  when 
the  hour  came  for  us  to  start  out  to  meet  our  engagement 
he  detailed  Pompey  to  show  us  the  way. 

The  fog  had  lifted,  and  the  sun  was  shining  brightly, 
and  my  spirits  were  buoyant  at  the  thought  that  we  were 
shortly  to  look  upon  the  Hebron  plantation. 

I  laughed  at  the  little  scare  which  Johnson  had  given 
me  yesterday,  and  my  gloomy  thoughts  of  the  early 
morning.  I  had  been  a  trifle  home-sick,  but  the  pleasant 
people  we  had  met,  the  charming  morning  and  all — well — 
this  was  the  sunny  South.  So  far  I  had  seen  no  great 
cause  to  turn  back  since  I  had  put  my  hand  to  the  plow. 

Pompey  led  us  by  numerous  hillocks  in  the  levee  which 
he  told  us  was  where  "  De  Union  so'g'ers  was  buried  " — 
by  a  big  camp,  where  hundreds  of  Irishmen  were  building 


46  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

a  new  levee,  and  so  on  until  we  came  to  a  hedge-row  of 
rose-bushes,  which  he  said  was  "Hambleton,  where  Gen. 
Hampson  lives,"  and  told  us  to  go  "right  ahead  and  you'll 
come  to  de  Gen'l's  house,  a-n-no  mistake."  We  dropped 
a  piece  of  money  in  Pompey's  palm,  and,  thanking  him, 
said  we  would  make  our  way  for  the  rest  of  the  distance 
without  his  help. 


CHAPTEE  XIII. 


HAMBLETON. 


Hambleton  had  evidently  been  a  beautiful  place ;  that  we 
could  see  as  we  traversed  the  broad  avenue  leading  to  the 
house.  But  every  thing  had  a  neglected  appearance.  The 
Bermuda  grass  had  crept  into  the  avenue  itself,  until  almost 
all  trace  of  the  road  was  obliterated.  What  a  wilderness  of 
rose-bushes  there  was,  look  in  whatever  direction  you  might ; 
but  the  grass  had  matted  itself  about  their  roots,  and  the 
untrained  branches  had  shot  out,  from  3'ear  to  year,  and 
coiled  around  each  other,  until  they  had  sprawled  all  over 
the  ground,  giving  it  and  themselves  the  most  untidy  ap- 
pearance possible. 

Dobson  pointed  out  to  me  the  grand  magnolia,  with  its 
thick,  glossy,  green  leaf;  and  there  were,  also,  the  less  pre- 
tentious members  of  the  same  family.  The  laurei  mundi, 
cape  jessamine,  oleander,  and  many  other  semi-trop- 
ical trees  showed  themselves  at  every  turn.  There  were 
the  spirea,  flowering  shrubs,  crape  myrtles,  pomegranate, 
althea,  etc.,  all  in  the  greatest  profusion.  There,  too,  was 
the  box-alder,  the  maple  of  the  South  ;  the  hackberry,  the 
counterpart  of  the  beach-tree ;  the  sweet  gum,  closely  re- 
sembling the  oak  of  the  West;  the  live  oak,  so  beautiful 


HAMBLETON.  47 

always  with  its  i^erpetual  coat  of  green  ;  the  china  tree, 
loaded  with  its  cream-colored  berries,  which  the  robins  were 
at  that  moment  gathering,  as  they  hopped  from  bough  to 
bongh,  and  which,  Dobson  said,  they  would  continue  to  eat 
until  some  of  the  little  gluttons  would  actually  become 
drunk,  and  in  this  condition  flutter  helplessly  at  your  feet. 
There  Avere  the  pecan  trees,  of  all  sizes,  from  those  tall  and 
powerful  with  age,  to  the  little  estray,  which  had  only  the 
year  before  sprung  out  of  the  grass  from  the  kernel  of  the 
nut  which  some  bird  had  dropped  in  its  flight.     There 
were  those  first  pledges  of  the  spring-time,  the  narcissus, 
the  jonquil,  the  hyacinth,  already  in  blossom,  too,  studding 
the  dead  grass  with  their  bright  colors,  and  forming  bor- 
ders to  Avalks  which  branched  off"  in  every  direction — now 
to  this  summer-house  ;  now  to  that  rustic  seat  under  abroad, 
spreading  tree ;  now  to  a  long  building,  which  we  afterwards 
learned  had  been  set  apart  for  billiards  and  bowling;  and 
now  to  a  path  which  led  down  to  the  lake.     Here  and  there 
we  could  see  evergreens  of  the  pine  and  cedar  families,  but 
what  a  dull  hue  they  had,  compared  with  the  magnolia,  the 
live   oak,  etc.     Over  all,  and  around  all,  was  that  air  of 
neglect:    shrub   and  tree,  rank  with  growth  for  want  of 
the  pruner;    bulbs,  blossoming   singly,  for   lack  of  fresh 
earth,  and  because  the  Bermuda  roots  were  holdins"  them 
as  in  a  death's  grip.     Every-where  was  an  alarming  growth 
of  wood,  and  bark,  and  fiber,  of  course  at  the  expense  of 
the  flower.     Every-where  nature  was  allowed  to  run  riot, 
and  she  had  taken  advantage  of  her  opportunity,  showing, 
wherever  the  eye  rested,  the  wonderful  richness  of  the  soil 
in  which  she  had  to  work. 

The  grass  in  the  walk  ;  the  matted  coils  of  rose-bushes; 
the  bulbs  with  their  single  blossoms ;  the  massive  gate-posts, 
which  stood  like  silent  sentinels  at  the  entrance,  minus  the 
gate;  the  absence  of  any  fence,  save  the  overgrown  hedge- 
row of  Cherokee  rose  and  privet ;  that  tree  actually  covered, 
BO  that  you  could  not  distinguish  its  kind,  by  the  enormous 


48  A   YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

weight  of  the  honeysuckle  which  has  run  up  its  sides  to  its 
uttermost  branches,  and  then  dropped  down  and  repeated 
its  growth  over  and  over  again,  until  it  is  almost  a  compact 
ball  of  honej'suckle  vine;  that  summer-house  and  billiard- 
room,  dingy  for  want  of  paint — all  these  told  their  story 
of  years  of  neglect. 

There  were  also  signs  of  the  destroyer's  hand  ;  here  was 
a  clump  of  trees,  badly  barked,  and  the  limbs  were  pulled 
down,  as  if  they  had  served  as  hitchings  for  horses — indeed, 
there  were  marks  of  their  hoofs  to  be  seen  underneath. 
Soldiery  had  been  at  work  in  more  places  than  one,  you 
saw,  if  you  took  a  closer  look  as  you  passed  along.  The 
grass  was  scarred  in  places,  and  there  were  signs  of  tents, 
and  here  j'ou  saw  some  broken  glass,  telling  its  story  of 
drink.  But  was  it  not  a  little  wonderful  that  a  Confed- 
erate senator  had  got  off  with  so  little  damage  to  his 
grounds,  especially  in  view  of  the  fact  that  a  very  large 
force  of  our  army  had  been  encamped  in  the  immediate 
neighborhood  for  months  ?  What  was  the  secret  of  his  es- 
cape ? 

We  approached  the  house  from  the  left,  and  there,  in  plain 
view,  was  one  of  those  numerous  "  cut-offs  "  of  the  Missis- 
sippi, which  are  called  lakes.  The  grounds  stretched  on 
bej'ond,  looking  just  as  attractive,  as  far  as  wo  could  see, 
as  those  we  had  passed  through. 

It  was  a  charming  sight — the  morning  sun  on  the  lake, 
dew-drops  shining  on  the  dead  grass,  the  lights  and  shad- 
ows under  the  trees.  In  the  rear  stood  a  plain  basement- 
story  frame  country  residence. 

The  house  was  manifestly  not  in  keeping  with  the 
grounds.  I  had  expected  a  fine  old  English  mansion  of 
massive  stone,  which  would  have  completed  the  picture.  I 
did  not  then  know  the  difficulty  of  getting  building  ma- 
terial together  here  ;  I  did  not  know  that  anything  be- 
yond brick  or  wood  for  house-building  was  not  to  be  found 
in  this  portion  of  the  Mississippi  delta;  that  nature  had 


THE   UAMBLETON   OCCUPANTS.  49 

not  left  on  its  surface,  or  in  its  bowels,  a  stone  as  large  as 
a  ■Nvalniit ;  that  in  fact  all  her  wonderous  wealth  had  been 
lavished  on  the  soil,  which  had  produced  the  enormous 
growth  scattered  all  about  us — a  soil  which  was  just  as 
productive  a  hundred  feet  below  as  it  was  on  the  surface. 


CHAPTEH  Xiy. 


THE   HAMBLETON   OCCUPANTS. 


TVe  were  admitted  to  the  Hambleton  residence  by  a 
negro  man,  who  bore  the  marks  of  intelligence  in  his  face, 
and  were  told  to  follow  him  up  stairs,  where  his  "  marsa  " 
then  was. 

General  Hampson,  now  the  host,  greeted  us  with  dignified 
cordiality,  and,  turning  to  the  negro,  said : 

''  This  is  James,  who  was  the  devoted  servant  of  my 
family  during  the  war." 

Just  then  a  large,  fine  looking  negro  woman  came  into 
the  room  with  some  glasses  for  the  side-board. 

"  This,"  said  the  General,  "  is  Sarah,  who,  with  James, 
remained  here  in  charge  of  this  property,  buried  our  silver 
and  other  valuables,  when  the  Federal  army  came,  and, 
though  threatened,  refused  to  divulge  their  whereabouts, 
thus  saving  them  to  us  uninjured.  These  two,  by  their 
tact  and  management,  though  my  house  was  used  as  a  hos- 
pital, succeeded  in  saving  us  from  any  serious  damage." 

Here  was  a  frank  acknowledgment  of  valuable  services 
rendered.  These  two  faithful  negroes,  then,  had  saved  the 
property  from  harm,  and  this  was  the  explanation  of  its 
good  condition. 


50  A    YEAR    OF   wreck:. 

"  Gentlemen,  what  do  you  say  to  a  whisky-toddy  before 
riding,  as  a  brace  for  the  shaking-np  before  us?  I  will 
have  to  mount  you  on  mules.  Before  the  war  there  was  an 
abundance  of  fine  carriages  and  horses  here  ;  now  if  there 
is  a  buggy  in  the  county  I  do  n't  know  where  it  is." 

Dobson  did  not  seem  to  want  to  object  to  the  toddy,  and 
I  did  not  dare  to  ;  in  fact,  the  side-board  looked  very  in- 
viting, with  its  decanter  and  glasses,  flanked  by  sugar- 
bowl,  a  tumbler  of  spoons,  and  the  water-pitcher,  so  I 
marched  up  to  it  like  the  others. 

A  whisky-toddy  is  perhaps  the  same  the  world  over.  In 
the  South  it  is  mixed  as  follows  :  A  glass  in  your  left  hand, 
and  a  spoon  in  your  right,  with  which  take  two  square 
lumjDS  of  sugar  and  put  in  your  glass  ;  leave  the  spoon  in  the 
glass,  holding  its  handle  between  the  first  and  second  fin- 
gers, the  glass  being  held  between  the  thumb  and  two  last 
fingers.  Lift  the  pitcher  with  the  right  hand,  and,  holding 
the  glass  on  a  level  with  your  eye,  pour  in  enough  water 
to  fairly  cover  the  sugar ;  set  the  pitcher  down,  and 
take  the  spoon  in  your  right  hand  again,  and  with  its 
bowl  gradually  crush  the  lumps  of  sugar  as  they  become 
saturated  with  water — this  until  no  trace  of  the  sugar  is 
left.  Then  comes  the  whisky,  which  is  poured  in  the  same 
manner  as  the  water.  Grasp  the  spoon  again  with  your 
right  hand,  and  lift  the  liquid  up  in  its  bowl,  letting  it 
fall  back  until  it  is  thoroughly  mixed,  which  is  evidenced 
by  a  little  bead  forming  around  the  edge  of  the  glass.  You 
then  transfer  the  glass  fi-om  the  left  hand  to  the  right, 
holding  it  as  directed  when  pouring  in  the  water  and 
whisky.     Then  comes  the  drinking. 

While  the  toddy  is  being  mixed  some  one  should  tell  a 
story.  In  this  way  attention  is  diverted  now  by  this  one 
stopping  to  listen,  now  that  one,  so  that  all  are  not  diving 
into  the  sugar-bowl  at  once,  or  demanding  the  ^Ditcher  or 
decanter  at  the  same  instant.  Dobson  was  a  great  success 
in  this  line.     He  understood  the  whole  thing  to  a  nicety, 


THE    HAMBLETON    OCCUPANTS.  51 

and  led  off  at  once  with  a  charming  little  Potomac  inci- 
dent, which  was  exceedingly  apropos^  as  our  host  happened 
to  know  both  parties  : 

"A  Bisliop  was  visiting  the  camp  of  our  regiments  in 
the  ninety-days'  service,  near  Washington,  and  was  a  guest 
of  the  General  then  in  command.  This  General  was  very 
fond  of  his  whisky-toddy,  but  was  afraid  to  indulge  in  it 
in  the  presence  of  the  Bishop  ;  but,  finally,  becoming  very 
thirsty,  in  a  fit  of  desperation,  he  asked  the  reverend  gentle- 
man if  he  would  not  like  a  glass  of  tuscanuggy  with  him. 

"  '  What  is  tuscanuggy?'  inquired  the  Bi'=hop,  with  his 
deliberate  tone  of  voice  and  distinct  pronunciation. 

"'Tuscanuggy? — why,  tuscanuggy  is  a  little  sugar, 
some  water,  and — and — a  very  little  good  old  whisky — 
just  a  drop,  you  know.  Bishop,  to  warm  it  up  ;  a  good 
thing,  Bishop,  these  damp  nights,'  blurted  out  the  General, 
as  if  astonished  at  his  own  presumption  ;  and  then  ho 
looked  into  the  Bishop's  eye,  anxiously,  to  see  if  his  shot 
had  struck. 

'* '  Well,  General,  if  you  think  it  a  good  thing,  I  will  take 
some  tuscanuggy  with  you.' 

"  So  the  General,  only  too  delighted,  mixed  it  up,  and 
after  it  had  been  drunk  inquired  of  the  Bishop  how  ho 
liked  it. 

"  '  Your  tuscanuggy  is  very  good.  General — very  good.'  " 

There  can  be  no  mistake  about  the  above  recipe  for 
whisky- toddy.  It  was  the  result  of  twenty -years'  practice 
on  the  part  of  Hampson,  and  any  one  contemplating  a  lo- 
cation in  the  South  should  study  it  carefully,  and  thus  save 
himself  the  mortification  I  experienced  in  not  being  posted 
as  to  bow  the  thing  was  done. 

I  tingle  with  shame,  even  now,  as  I  remember  what  fearful 
blunders  I  made,  pouring  the  water  into  the  glass  before  the 
sugar,  then  grasping  at  the  lemonade  sugar-crusher,  when 
I  should  have  coaxed  the  sugar  to  melt  with  my  spoon,  and 
getting  my   drink    ready   before    Dobson   had    his    two 


52  A   YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

lumps  of  sugar  in  his  glass.  I  was  n't  quite  a  boor,  I 
thought,  but  I  showed  myself  to  be  the  veriest  one  on  this 
occasion. 

It  was  quite  evident  that  Dobson's  manner  of  handling 
a  whisky-toddy  had  completely  captivated  General  Hamp- 
son. 

As  for  me,  I  belonged  to  the  awkward  squad. 

James  announced  Mr.  Johnson  and  his  agent,  and  was 
told  to  show  them  up. 

Then  followed  whisky-toddy  No.  2. 

Mr.  Johnson  simply  called  to  know  at  what  time  to- 
morrow Gen.  Hampson  would  be  disengaged,  and  the  hour 
of  ten  was  named.  He  was  shown  a  beautifully  executed 
map  of  the  plantation  his  agent  had  been  looking  at,  and 
told  the  price  of  it  was  $110,000,  and  then  Mr.  Johnson  and 
his  agent  took  their  departure.  Nothing  was  said  about 
his  having  his  eye  on  the  place  we  were  to  look  at,  so  1 
considered  the  coast  clear  for  us. 

Our  outfit  was  ready,  James  said,  and  then  Mrs.  Hamp- 
son coming  in,  we  were  presented  to  her,  and  received  at 
her  hands  an  invitation  to  dinner  that  day.  In  answer  to 
our  compliments  bestowed  upon  their  grounds,  she  re- 
plied : 

"  Yes,  it  was  pleasant  before  the  war.  I  felt  I  could 
look  out  upon  a  beautiful  picture ;  nothing  was  lacking 
but  the  hills,  and  we  used  to  imagine  the  forest  which  you 
can  see  beyond  the  lake  to  be  hills,  and  then  the  picture 
was  complete.  In  those  days  not  even  a  blade  of  grass 
wanted  for  attention.  Now  you  can  see  the  walks  and 
every  thing  are  suffering  for  want  of  it." 


OUR  JOURNEY  TO  THE  HEBRON  PLANTATION.      53 


CHAPTER  XY. 

OUR  JOURNEY  TO  THE  HEBRON  PLANTATION. 

We  found,  on  descending,  a  primitive  outfit,  to  be  sure. 
There  was  one  pretty  fair-looking  horse  with  accouter- 
ments.  This  was  Hampson's  saddle  animal,  which  he  had 
picked  up  in  Mexico  on  his  flight  there  after  Lee's  surren- 
der, and  which  had  brought  him  back  home  when  word 
was  sent  him  that  the  United  States'  Government  was  not 
injuring  a  hair  on  the  head  of  a  single  Confederate  leader. 
This  he  proceeded  to  mount.  Then  there  were  the  skele- 
tons of  a  horse  and  a  mule ;  and  such  saddles !  Well,  I 
have  seen  thousands  of  them  since  :  they  are  a  peculiarity 
of  the  South,  and  I  am  used  to  them  now  ;  but  at  that 
time  they  struck  me  as  being  exceedingly  crude — no  two 
buckles  of  the  same  size  or  make,  no  two  pieces  of  leather 
of  the  same  kind,  stirrups  of  different  patterns,  saddle- 
frames  with  the  leather  rotted  away ;  every  scrap  of  leather 
in  the  two  outfits,  and  the  frames  themselves,  were  but 
scraps,  with  great  ugly  cracks  in  them  for  want  of  a  few 
drops  of  oil  at  the  proper  time — this  piece  torn  away  and 
fastened  with  a  strip  of  deer  hide,  that  piece  secured  with 
a  piece  of  tow-string,  others  held  together  by  the  aid  of  a 
piece  of  whang-leather.  Such  was  the  general  make-up  of 
the  saddles.  The  saddle-blankets  were  gunny-sacks.  The 
mule  had  a  piece  of  a  blind-bridle,  and  the  horse  an 
equally  dilapidated  piece  of  riding-bridle.  There  was  but 
one  thing  which  could  be  said  in  favor  of  the  sorry  outfit : 
horse,  mule,  saddles  and  bridles  were  all  in  keeping. 

Was  this  the  farm-life  my  fancy  had  pictured — the  fine 
horse,  the  ringing  spur,  etc?  Never  mind,  if  we  came 
here  to  live  we  should  revolutionize  all  this  I 


54  A    YEAR    OF    WRECK. 

Hampson  said,  "  Take  your  choice,  gentlemen  ;  "  so,  with 
the  best  intention  in  the  world,  I  insisted  that  Dobson 
should  mount  the  horse  (it  seems  the  poor  thing  had  a  sore 
back,  and  he  struggled  mightily),  which  he  did  after  much 
effort.  I  had  to  hide  my  face  in  my  handkerchief  to  save 
me  from  an  explosion  at  the  ridiculous  spectacle  he  pre- 
sented. His  dress  was  faultless,  which  brought  out  the 
dilapidated  condition  of  the  horse  to  greater  effect;  and,  in 
turn,  the  horse's  seedy  appearance  rendered  Dobson's  fine 
feathers  more  conspicuous.  The  effort  of  mounting  bad 
thrown  his  black  silk  hat  upon  the  back  of  his  head,  and 
made  him  very  red  in  the  face ;  then,  too,  one  stirrup  was 
about  three  inches  shorter  than  the  other,  giving  him  the 
position  assumed  on  a  velocipede  in  motion,  while  both 
face  and  hat  looked  very  much  as  they  naturally  would 
at  the  close  of  a  tight  race  on  that  vehicle.  The  righting 
of  his  hat  was  the  work  of  an  instant,  though  I  fancied  it 
was  done  a  little  petulantly,  and  he  soon  regained  his  nat- 
ural color ;  but  it  took  some  time  for  James  to  "  tinker  " 
the  stirrups  so  that  one  leg  should  not  be  dangling  while 
the  knee  of  the  other  showed  itself  over  the  j)ommel  of  the 
saddle. 

We  finally  got  ourselves  in  motion,  but  Dobson's  first 
effort  to  put  his  beast  out  of  a  walk  came  very  near  bring- 
ing it  down  on  all-fours,  and  shot  him  forward  upon  the 
horse's  neck,  again  throwing  his  hat  to  the  back  of  his 
head,  and  again  giving  him  a  very  red  appearance  in  the 
face.  The  animal  was  an  inveterate  stumbler,  and  as  often 
as  he  could  be  surprised  into  any  thing  beyond  a  walk,  by 
dint  of  spur  and  peach-limb,  so  often  was  he  sure  to  pitch 
Dobson  to  the  front — once  or  twice  so  violently  as  to  cause 
the  breaking  of  the  rotten  saddle-girth  and  rendering  a  halt 
for  repairs  necessary.  Dobson  had  evidently  made  a  water- 
haul,  for  beyond  the  discomfort  of  a  hatchet-back,  which 
insisted  on  shoving  itself  up  through  the  saddle,  and  a  gait 
which  rendered  the  steady  use  of  a  peach -limb  and  my 


OUR  JOURNEY  TO  THE  HEBRON  PLANTATION.      55 

heels  against  the  sides  of  my  mule  necessary  to  keep  within 
hearing  distance  of  Hampson,  I  got  along  very  well. 
Hampson  kept  the  lead  and  saw  little  or  nothing  of  Dob- 
son's  discomfort,  except  when  we  halted  to  fix  the  saddle- 
girths,  which  he  said  would  have  been  very  mortifying  be- 
fore the  war. 

Hampson  pointed  out  every  thing  of  interest  as  we  rode 
along.  "  Do  you  see  the  game  on  the  lake  ?  There  are 
ducks  and  geese  in  abundance  in  the  season,  with  the 
woods  full  of  every  thing,  from  the  bear  down,  though,"  he 
said,  as  if  qualifying  this  statement,  '-you  will  have  to  go 
back  into  the  country  eight  or  ten  miles  to  find  bear." 
There  were  deer  and  turkey  without  number.  There  had 
been  no  hunting  since  before  the  war,  and  game  had  ac- 
cumulated, of  course.  AYere  we  fond  of  hunting  woodcock  ? 
Here  was  our  chance.  He  had  noticed  several  along  this 
very  road  when  he  had  visited  the  Hebron  plantation  just 
before  going  to  New  Orleans— the  first  visit,  by  the  way, 
he  had  made  to  this  place  since  before  the  war. 

A  covey  of  quail  flew  up  before  us.  '•  Oh  !  yes,  you  will 
find  them  wherever  you  go." 

We  passed  between  the  stately  gate-posts. 
"  Here  was  my  porter's  lodge,  but  there  is  no  sign  of 
it  now,"  he  said,  looking  around  inquiringly,  adding  that 
''  it  was  probably  destroyed  by  the  soldiers." 

"  Do  you  see  that  Cherokee  rose-hedge  ?  Have  you  ever 
seen  this  rose  in  bloom?  Though  single,  it  is  to  me  the 
most  beautiful  of  all  roses." 

"  Yes,  roses  grow  rank.  This  is  their  country.  \Yhen 
you  see  them  in  blossom  here,  you  will  have  to  acknowledge, 
as  I  have  been  compelled  to,  that  you  never  saw  roses  until 
you  saw  them  here. 

''  Did  you  notice  that  enormous  mass  of  rose-bushes  just 
before  passing  out  of  the  gate-way  ?  What  variety  did  you 
think  it  was  ?  It  is  the  chromatilla  !  Perhaps  there  is 
more  chromatilla  rose-bush  there  than  is  to  be  found,  ail 


56  A   YEAR   or   WRECK. 

put  together,  in  all  the  conservatories  of  the  North,"  he 
added. 

"You  can  see,"  he  said,  "  what  a  rich  soil  this  is  by  the 
enormous  vegetable  growth  all  around  us. 

"  This  country  was  as  smooth  and  as  clear-cut  as  a  lawn 
before  the  war.  Now  look  at  it — dead  weed-stalks  as  high 
as  a  house  in  places ;  the  ditches  choked  with  bramble- 
bushes  ;  young  cotton-woods,  willows,  and  sycamores  grow- 
ing every-where.  "Where  is  there  a  country  that  would 
produce  such  a  growth  in  four  years?  It  is  not  to  be  found 
on  the  face  of  the  earth.  Things  look  desolate  enough 
compared  with  former  times  :  the  fences  either  rotted  down 
or  destroyed,  buildings  needing  paint  or  whitewash — noth- 
ing tidy  as  before  the  war.  There  is  one  thing,  however — 
the  land  has  had  rest,  and  it  will  be  safe  to  build  on  a  big 
crop." 

This  was  encouraging ! 

The  robins  and  meadow-larks  were  flying  up  all  about 
us.  "  Yes,  this  is  their  season  ;  the  robins  will  soon  all 
disappear,  as  the  weather  grows  warm  in  the  North,  and 
so  will  most  of  the  larks." 

We  passed  a  stream  which  Hampson  called  a  bayou,  and 
which  he  said  had  once  been  the  bed  of  the  Mississippi 
river,  when  the  lake  on  which  he  lived  had  been  a  part  of 
the  river,  and  then  he  explained  to  us  that  the  lakes  in  this 
country  were  the  results  of  enormous  bends,  which  would 
at  length  form  peninsulas,  and  then  in  the  course  of  time 
the  neck  of  land  would  be  cut  in  two — all  this  by  the  con- 
tinued caving  of  the  bank,  caused  by  the  rapid  current 
against  it,  and  the  light,  porous  soil  it  has  to  work  upon ; 
then  the  mouths  would  gradually  fill  up  with  the  deposit, 
which  would  be  forced  into  them  by  the  current,  and  thus 
the  lake  would  be  made.  Several  had  been  made  since  he 
had  come  into  the  country.  The  cut-off  which  had  made 
the  lake  on  which  he  lived,  was,  however,  beyond  the 


OUR  JOURNEY  TO  THE  HEBRON  PLANTATION.      57 

memory  of  the  oldest  inhabitants,  but  here  was  the  bayou 
which  had  once  been  one  of  its  mouths. 

As  we  rode  along  this  stream,  we  started  up  ducks  in 
abundance,  which  flew  up  the  stream  and  then  down  it, 
quacking  their  alarm  or  defiance,  and  then  splashing  down 
into  the  water  again  within  gun-shot. 

What  gunning  here  was,  to  be  sure,  and  how  we  should 
enjoy  it  if  we  came  here  to  live,  I  thought. 

"Here  is  the  Alhambra  Plantation,"  (the  property  of 
the  man  who  had  been  introduced  on  the  wharf-boat  as 
being  keen  as  a  brier).  "  That  corner  of  his  place  we 
are  just  passing  once  produced  two  bales  and  a  half  of  cot- 
ton to  the  acre,"  Hampson  said,  "  and  that  big  building  in 
the  distance  is  the  Hebron  gin-house,  and  there  are  the 
cabins  for  the  negroes  farther  in  the  rear."  "  Where  is  the 
residence?"  1  asked.  It  had  none  !  He  had  bought  the 
place  intending  to  present  it  to  a  daughter  as  a  marriage 
gift. 

"  It  was  the  custom  to  set  the  young  people  up  in  busi- 
ness on  their  marriage,"  he  explained.  "  Where  one  par- 
ent presented  the  plantation,  the  other  would  stock  it  with 
slaves,  mules,  etc.  Don't  you  think  this  preferable  to  the 
Northern  habit  of  hoarding  one's  wealth  until  death,  and 
then  having  it  divided  by  the  terms  of  a  long  will  among 
one's  children  :  some  of  whom  have  passed  the  period 
when  they  needed  help,  having  accumulated  wealth  of 
their  own,  perhaps  after  a  severe  struggle  which  could 
have  been  saved  by  the  timely  assistance  which  was  really 
their  due — while  others,  not  having  the  courage  of  their 
more  fortunate  brothers,  have  been  ruined  in  the  effort,  and 
are  therefore  in  no  condition  to  enjoy  it  when  it  does  come  ? 
It  is  to  me  a  melancholy  sight  to  witness,  as  I  have  in  the 
North,  the  hungry  relatives  of  a  rich  man  waiting  for  him 
to  die,  so  that  his  property  may  be  distributed.  All  this 
was  avoided  here,  by  this,  to  me,  charming  Southern  cus- 
tom." 

3* 


58  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

Eeturning  to  the  subject  of  the  Hebron  place,  he  said  he 
would  have  built  a  residence  as  soon  as  his  daughter 
married^  but  the  war  had  come  on,  and  that  had  put  a  stop 
to  every  thing.  With  the  exception  of  a  residence,  it  was 
a  complete  plantation.  There  was,  however,  the  overseer's 
cabin,  which  would  make  a  snug  little  home,  he  said,  until 
some  thing  better  could  be  built.  And  so  we  reached  the 
Hebron  Plantation. 


CHAPTER  XYl. 

THE    HEBRON   PLANTATION. 

We  visited  the  plantation  quarters  first.  Quite  a  num- 
ber of  negroes  of  different  age  and  sex  were  visible,  peer- 
ing around  the  corners  of  cabins,  or  thrusting  their  woolly 
heads  out  of  doors.  Poultry  in  great  abundance  were 
cackling,  and  an  astonishing  number  of  hungry-looking 
dogs  were  lying  around.  A  general  air  of  idleness  was 
every-where  observable.  There  was  the  blacksmith -shop, 
as  Hampson  had  written,  and  he  called  a  negro,  by  the 
name  of  Cato,  to  bring  him  the  keys.  Cato  called  Hamp- 
son "  marsa,"  which  seemed  to  please  him  very  much. 
Now  that  the  negroes  were  free,  it  evidently  seemed  a  great 
thing  for  them  to  still  say  "  marsa  "  and  "  missus."  When 
the  door  of  the  blacksmith -shop  swung  open,  bellows,  anvil, 
and  hammers,  all  apparently  quite  complete,  were  dis- 
played, and  under  the  same  roof  was  a  carpenter's  shop,  of 
which  Hampson  had  not  made  mention.  We  were  next 
shown  the  store-house,  where  the  provisions  had  been 
kept.  It  had  a  very  substantial  lock,  with  iron  bars  at 
the  windows,  giving  it  somewhat  the  appearance  of  a  jail. 
Then  there  was  the  plantation  cook-house,  with  its  enor- 


THE    UEBRON    PLANTATION.  59 

mous  bakc-oven,  and  its  great  iron  kettles  fastened  in  the 
brick  range,  such  as  we  had  seen  in  the  AVest  for  rendering 
lard  or  boiling  soap.  Here  the  cooking  for  the  whole 
plantation  had  been  done  in  bulk.  The  cooked  food, 
Hampson  explained,  was  taken  to  the  field  for  breakfast 
and  dinner  ;  for  supper  it  was  eaten  in  the  quarters. 

''  I  never  stinted  my  slaves  ;  whatever  they  could  eat  in 
reason,  they  got.  I  always  paid  a  great  deal  of  attention 
to  a  plantation  garden,  and  fed  my  slaves  abundantly  with 
vegetables,  which,  besides  being  wholesome,  saved  meat. 
I  allowed  them  to  raise  poultr}',  and  to  do  Avhat  they 
pleased  with  it,  either  to  eat  it  or  sell  it,  which  gave  them 
what  little  spending  money  they  needed.  I  have  myself 
bought  the  poultry  and  eggs  from  my  own  slaves." 

This  he  said,  looking  at  us,  as  if  he  thought  it  was  some- 
thing at  w^hich  we  should  be  surprised. 

"  The  suckling  women  were  never  crowded  with  work, 
and  great  care  was  taken  that  they  should  not  become  over- 
heated. Their  young  were  left  in  charge  of  the  old  mam- 
mies [superannuated  negresses]  in  the  quarters,  who  would 
take  them  to  the  field  at  stated  times  to  be  suckled.  Good 
masters  had  covered  spring-wagons  for  this  purpose,  and 
it  was  pleasant  to  see  how  bappy  both  young  and  old  were 
while  making  these  little  journeys." 

In  answer  to  our  question,  he  said  the  increase  among 
slaves  was  about  forty  per  cent,  annually — which  w^e  un- 
derstood to  mean  forty  per  cent,  of  the  women  annually 
had  young. 

"  It  required  the  constant  care  of  the  overseer,"  he  said, 
"  to  watch  after  these  people  to  see  that  they  took  proper 
care  of  themselves — that  is,  that  they  were  cleanly  in  their 
persons,  and  ate  no  unwholesome  food. 

"As  to  their  work,  it  was  all  a  mistake,  the  belief  that 
they  were  overtasked.  It  was  only  in  the  picking  season 
that  they  were  really  busy  at  all;  four  days  in  the  week 
would  average   their  work  for  the   balance  of  the   year. 


60  A    YEAR    OF    WRECK. 

During  the  picking  season  they  did  have  to  work  hard — 
is  not  your  harvest  laborious? — going  to  the  field  before 
daylight  many  times,  and  working  into  the  night ;  but  it 
was  at  a  season  of  the  year  when  it  was  comparatively  cool, 
and  the  climate  permitted  hard  work.  The  fact  is,"  con- 
tinued he,  "a  hand  could  make  with  great  ease  more  cotton 
than  he  could  gather  by  the  hardest  work.  Many  planters 
would  bu}'  a  few  extra  hands  every  fall,  as  they  came  away 
from  their  summering  in  Virginia  or  Iventuck}',  to  help 
gather  the  crop.  Bringing  their  laborers  into  the  country 
at  this  season,  they  were  immediately  of  great  use,  and 
would  to  some  extent  become  acclimated  before  the  hot 
weather  of  the  following  year  ;  and  yet,  even  with  this 
extra  help,  it  was  impossible  to  gather  the  entire  crop. 
Plowing  commenced  in  January  for  the  new  crop,  and 
while  the  plows  were  running  picking  was  still  going  on, 
having  commenced  about  the  first  of  September,  and  thus 
fields  white  with  cotton  were 'frequently  plowed  under." 
(I  thought  to  myself  no  cotton  should  ever  be  plowed  un- 
der on  a  plantation  of  mine.)  "  This  only  applies  to  the 
swamp  land  ;  on  the  hills,  where  the  yield  was  only  one- 
third  to  one-half  a  bale,  every  thing  was  different.  There 
all  transactions  were  on  a  small  scale.  I  know  nothing  of 
that  country  from  actual  experience." 

In  fact,  I  fancied  Hampson  turned  up  his  nose,  as  if  he 
would  indicate  the  insignificance  of  the  hill  country  when 
compared  to  the  bottom-lands. 

"  Cotton,"  he  said  "  was  an  absolutely  certain  crop  before 
the  war.  I  never  knew  a  year  when  we  did  not  make  more 
than  we  could  gather." 

I  asked  him  what  he  thought  of  the  army-worm. 

"  They  don't  frighten  me  at  all.  They  made  their  ap- 
pearance two  or  three  years  before  the  war,  at  long  inter- 
vals, and  since  they  have  so  recently  visited  the  country, 
they  may  not  show  themselves  again  for  many  years.  I 
think  it  is  borrowing  trouble  to  dread  them.     For  myself, 


THE    HEBRON    PLANTATION.  61 

I  do  n't  give  them  a  thought,  unless  some  one  refers  to 
them,  as  you  have  done." 

We  next  visited  the  mule-shed.  It  liad  a  capaoit}^  for 
not  less  than  sixty  head,  with  a  stall  and  feed-trough  for 
each,  and  with  ample  room  for  storing  hay  and  fodder  over- 
head. There  was  also  a  fine  corn-crib  close  by,  and  a  well, 
which  had  a  rude  windlass  arrangement  for  drawing  water, 
and  a  huge  trough  hollowed  from  a  cypress-tree  for  the 
stock  to  drink  from.  A  box  about  the  size  and  shape  of  a 
wagon-bed,  near  by,  with  a  brick  chimney  at  its  head,  was 
explained  to  be  a  fixture  for  steaming  cotton-seed  as  food 
for  the  stock,  said  to  be  nourishing. 

Then  we  drifted  down  into  the  woods,  and  started  up  a 
drove  of  long-horned  animals,  which  Hampson  told  us  were 
"  Texas  cattle,  which  Dr.  Hudson  brought  out  from  that 
country  with  him  after  the  war.  These  cattle  are  for  sale," 
he  said  "  for  beef.  They  were  put  into  my  winter  pasture 
while  being  disposed  of  They  are  bought  mostly  by  the 
levee  contractors,"  he  added,  as  he  saw  a  look  of  incredu- 
lity at  his  statement  that  they  were  ''beef"  cattle.  The 
impression  we  had  of  them,  with  their  sides  not  apparently 
over  six  inches  through,  as  they  scampered  off,  was  that 
they  must  be  all  horn,  hide,  and  bone;  and  our  belief  in 
their  being  any  thing  fit  to  eat,  though  they  might  bo 
palmed  off  on  levee  contractors,  was  not  in  the  least 
strengthened  when,  a  couple  of  rods  further  on,  we  found 
two  of  them  bogged  down  in  the  hopeless  mire  of  a 
ditch,  the  veriest  pictures  of  poverty,  so  far  as  flesh  was 
concerned.  Hampson  did  n't  even  then  call  them  poor, 
but  said  they  were  weak  from  their  long  journey  out  from 
Texas. 

Was  this  a  fair  specimen  of  the  cattle  of  the  country? 
I  asked. 

"  Yes,  the  cattle  here  are  for  the  most  part  Texas.  The 
fact  is,  before  the  war  cotton  and  slaves  were  our  only 
staples,  and  no  attention  was  paid  to  any  thing  else.    Each 


62  A    YEAR    OF    WRECK. 

planter  would  have  a  few  joka  of  cattle,  such  as  you  have 
just  seen — of  course  they  would  be  filled  out  better — to 
haul  saw-logs,  etc.,  and  a  few  milch-cows  of  the  same 
breed  for  home  use.  These  cows  would  give  a  scant  half- 
gallon  of  milk  a  day  ;  but  as  for  butter,  no  one  ever  thought 
of  making  that,  and,  though  hogs  throve  well  here,  only 
now  and  then  a  planter  made  his  own  meat." 

"  But  did  no  one  ever  attempt  to  introduce  good  milch- 
cows  here?"  1  asked. 

"  I  have  heard  of  here  and  there  a  sickly  attempt  to  in- 
troduce blooded  cattle,  but  they  seemed  to  require  so  much 
care,  it  was  soon  abandoned.  Texas  cattle  grew  natural,  just 
as  negroes,  or  cotton,  or  Bermuda  grass.  The  cattle  you've 
just  seen  did 'nt  look  very  trim  to  you,  perhaps,  but  their 
meat  is  really  very  fine." 

I  thoughttomyself,  wait  until  we  get  down  here — we  would 
have  fine  cattle,  would  bring  them  with  us  ;  and  if  they 
needed  attention,  which  of  course  they  would,  wherever 
they  might  be — did  'nt  we  slop  our  Ayrshire  cow  at  home 
morning  and  night,  and  stable  her  the  same  as  our  horses, 
and  did  'nt  she  pay  us  back  with  a  bucket  full  of  milk  twice 
a  day,  even  in  midwinter — why  we  would  give  it  to  them. 
And  as  for  our  meat,  we  would  onl}^  buy  that  the  first  year ; 
after  that,  as  I  was  a  man,  we  would  raise  it.  No  ninety- 
one  barrels  of  pork  coming  down  the  river  annually  di- 
rected to  the  Hebron  plantation.  We  would  knock  that  item 
square  out  of  the  Dobson  estimate,  at  the  end  of  the  first 
year. 

Hampson  had  spoken  of  his  winter  pasture.  I  asked, 
what  did  he  mean  by  that?     I  could  see  no  live  grass. 

"Do  you  see  the  green  cane  all  about  you?  The  stock 
feed  on  its  leaves  and  tender  shoots,  and  are  very  fond  of 
it.  It  will  keep  mules  in  good  order  without  any  corn. 
You  can  see  the  cane-brake  is  of  dense  growth,  which 
afi'ords  warm  shelter  for  stock  the  coldest  winter  days  we 
have  here. 


THE    nAMBLTON    OCCUPANTS.  63 

''  Fine  hiding-places  for  run-away  negroes,"  he  added, 
apparently  thinking  aloud,  and  then  quickly  continued,  as 
if  he  would  divert  us  and  himself  instantly  from  this 
thought:  "  Glorious  cover  for  wild  game,  too— you'd  find 
many  a  deer  if  j-ou 'd  shake  up  that  brake,"  looking  over  his 
shoulder  as  we  turned  to  retrace  our  steps. 

We  next  "  did  "  the  gin-house,  which  was  a  three-story 
building  covering  at  least  a  quarter  of  an  acre  of  ground, 
and  apparently  in  complete  repair.  Under  its  roof  were 
the  saw  and  grist-mills,  and  the  machinery  for  ginning  and 
baling  cotton,  all  propelled  by  the  same  engine— Eich- 
mond,  Ya.,  make.  They  do  manufacture  something  in  the 
South,  I  thought.  Encouraged  at  this,  I  looked  at  the 
gin-stands,  but  they  were  made  somewhere  in  Massachu- 
setts, and  both  the  saw  and  grist-mills  were  marked  Cin- 

cinnti,  Ohio. 

Hampson  expatiated  upon  the  importance  of  the  inven- 
tion of  the  gin-stand,  which  he  held  to  rank  with  that  of 
steam-engine  and  telegraph.  What  a  task  it  was  to  get  the 
lint  from  off  the  seed  when  it  was  done  by  hand,  and  how 
easy  it  was  now,  as  the  little  circular  saws,  fastened  in  a 
belt  and  with  hooked  teeth,  pulled  the  lint  away  from  the 
seed,  sending  the  fleecy  staple  through  an  air-chamber,  up 
into  the  lint-room,  reminding  you  as  it  fell  of  the  falling  of 
huge  snow  flakes.  "  The  fruit  of  the  cotton  plant,"  said  he, 
"  goes  where  the  chaff  from  the  wheat  goes,  and  vice  versa." 

If  there  was  a  belt  or  bolt  or  any  thing  lacking,  we  could 
not  perceive  it.  To  all  appearance  it  was  a  perfectly  com- 
plete arrangement.  It  certainly  looked  as  if  all  you  had 
to  do,  was  to  put  fire  in  the  furnace,  and,  whether  you 
wanted  to  grind  meal,  or  saw  lumber,  or  gin  a  bale  of  cot- 
ton, you  had  only  to  put  on  the  proper  belt,  and  the  thing 
was  at  work.  There  were  huge  round  tanks  by  the 
side  of  the  gin-house,  and  two  or  three  cemented  cisterns 
under  it,  with  troughs  leading  from  the  roof  to  catch 
the  rain-water,  and  should  this   supply  ever  become  ex- 


64  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

bausted,  there  was  a  well  hard  by.  There  was  an  immense 
sloping  scaffold  in  front,  to  dry  the  cotton,  when  it  was 
brought  in  damp  from  the  field.  There  was  a  large  lantern 
suspended  by  a  rope  arranged  on  a  pully  from  the  cone  of 
the  roof  in  front,  so  that  the  night-work  of  putting  the 
dried  cotton  from  the  scaffold  into  the  third  story  of  the  gin- 
house,  and  the  day's  picking  from  the  wagons  upon  the 
scaffold  for  the  next  day's  sunning,  should  be  done  without 
any  carrying  about  of  lights,  cotton  being  so  inflammable. 

"It  was  customary,"  Hampson  said,  "  for  the  negroes  to 
pick  as  long  as  it  was  light  enough  for  them  to  see,  the 
cotton  being  piled  in  wagons  as  it  was  picked — then  all 
hands  to  the  gin-house.  The  lantern  was  lit,  and  the  cot- 
ton which  had  been  sunning  on  the  scaffold  was  gathered 
up  in  baskets  and  carried  up  stairs.  Then  the  freshly 
picked  cotton  was  taken  from  the  wagons  and  scattered  on 
the  scaffold.  Sometimes  this  would  take  from  nine  until 
ten  o'clock.  Bright  moonlight  nights,  if  there  had  been  a 
good  deal  of  rain,  and  the  cotton  was  open  so  as  to  be  in 
danger  of  being  beaten  by  further  rains,  they  would,  after 
taking  supper,  go  back  to  the  field  ^nd  pick ;  but  this 
scaffold  work  was  about  all  the  night-work  they  did,  and 
this  they  would  do  chanting  their  strange  tunes  and  sing- 
ing plantation  melodies. 

"  This  gin-house,"  Hampson  added,  "  cost  me  twenty -five 
thousand  dollars. 

I  asked  him  how  it  came  to  be  so  well  preserved  ? 

"  Cato,  the  negro  who  gave  us  the  keys,  and  his  brother 
James  remained  at  their  post  and  guarded  the  property. 
They  were  faithful  servants  to  me,"  he  continued,  looking 
around.  "  1  was  pleasantly  disappointed  to  find  my  prop- 
erty so  well  cared  for." 

Riding  toward  the  upper  line  of  the  plantation  we 
came  to  a  long  building  which  Hampson  told  us  was  a 
weather-shed.  It  was  not  inclosed,  being  simply  a  roof 
with  gutters  under  its  eaves,  which  we  could  see  led  to 


THE    IIAMBLETON    OCCUPANTS.  G5 

cisterns.  There  were  several  of  these  sheds  on  the  place, 
he  said,  and  in  case  of  rain,  the  hands  working  in  the 
vicinity  were  huddled  into  tiiem,  thus  keeping  them  dry, 
and  saving  the  loss  of  time  in  going  to  and  from  the  quar- 
ters, besides  furnishing  a  bountiful  supply  of  healthy  rain- 
water for  the  hands  to  drink,  at  convenient  localities  on 
the  plantation. 

We  understood  him  to  say  he  never  allowed  his  slaves  to 
drink  any  thing  but  rain-water,  that  well-water,  or  as  he 
called  it,  "seepage  "  water,  was  very  unwholesome. 

We  looked  at  the  bank  in  front  to  see  if  we  could  dis- 
cover any  signs  of  caving.  Poor  fools !  We  could  see 
none.  (We  didn't  want  to  see  any  thing  unfavorable.) 
Hampson  called  a  negro  who  was  passing — as  if  he  would 
not  ask  us  to  take  his  own  testimony  as  to  what  the  bank 
here  had  been  doing  many  years  back,  or  what  it  was 
doing  now. 

lie  asked  the  negro  to  whom  he  used  to  belong,  and 
how  long  he  had  been  in  the  country. 

"I  used  to  'long  to  Mr.  Samson,  an'  hab  libed  here  sence 
de  stars  fell,  when  ebber  dat  was." 

"Has  there  ever  been  any  caving  of  the  bank  here," 
Hampson  asked  a  little  sharply. 

"  Not  as  I  can  recomember." 

"  We  have  taken  a  bird's-eye  view  of  the  place  now," 
Hampson  said,  "and  so  we  will  start  on  our  return  to 
Hambleton,"  which  we  finally  reached. 

Then  followed  whisky-toddy  No.  3.  I  need  hardly  say 
that  I  improved  on  my  first  morning  effort. 


66  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 


CHAPTEE  XYII. 

DINNER    AT    HAMBLETOX,    AND    WHAT    FOLLOWED. 

Dinner  was  served  immediately  upon  our  return  to  Ham- 
bleton,with  claret,  sherry,  and  a  rum-punch  for  the  climax, 
after  which  we  settled  for  a  little  business  talk. 

But  what  a  condition  I  was  in  for  a  "business"  talk, 
after  three  whisky-toddies,  claret,  sherry,  and  arum-punch, 
on  virgin  soil,  so  to  speak — more  liquor  than  I  had  con- 
sumed in  any  year  of  my  natural  life  before.  There  was 
not  a  single  piece  of  furniture  in  the  room  that  was  not 
double  its  natural  size,  and  the  table  stretched  out,  as  did 
the  dining-room,  till  it  seemed  a  quarter  of  a  mile  long.  I 
distinctly  saw  two  Hampsons  beaming  at  me  at  the  head  of 
the  table,  and  there  was  a  pair  of  Dobsons,  with  faces  red 
as  the  neck  of  a  turkey-gobbler.  A  thought  of  the  Dobson 
estimate  spun  across  my  spinning  brain,  with  an  extra 
cypher  added,  so  that  the  number  was  9,000  bales,  which  I 
almost  saw  ready  piled  up  in  front  of  the  Hebron  planta- 
tion. While  my  thoughts  were  spinning  around  like  a  top, 
and  Dobson's  ditto,  I  had  a  vague  impression  that  Hampson 
was  only  just  wound  up  for  business  ;  in  other  words,  what 
had  set  our  brains  reeling,  had  simply  steadied  Hampson's 
nerves  for  the  work  before  him.  More  than  ever  in  our  lives 
before  we  needed  our  heads  on  our  shoulders,  and  more  than 
ever  before  they  went  gipsyiiig.  We  were  in  no  condition 
even  to  trade  jack-knives,  and  here  was  a  trade  to  make  in- 
volving eighty-seven  thousand  five  hundred  dollars.  Hamp- 
son's statements,  while  we  were  going  over  the  Hebron 
plantation,  of  the  easy  manner  in  which  cotton  was  made, 
had  almost  intoxicated  us,  and  then  the  liquor  we  drank 
produced  a  sure-enough  intoxication — altogether,  instead 


DINNER    AT    IIAMBLETON,    AND    WHAT    FOLLOWED.  67 

of  being  in  a  condition  to  drive  a  close  bargain,  we  were 
fine  subjects  for  a  twenty-four  hours'  sleep,  with  hat  and 
boots  on,  wherever  we  might  chance  to  fall. 

I  have  an  indistinct  recollection  of  asking  Hampson  the 
original  conundrum  as  to  whether  the  price  he  had  named 
was  his  lowest  figure,  to  which  he  of  course  answered 
"yes,"  plainly  seeing  that  we  were  ready  to  take  the  plan- 
tation at  any  figure  ;  and  then  he  made  us  long  for  it  all 
the  more  by  saying  that  his  friends  thought  he  was  foolish 
to  sell  it  at  all  at  this  time.  Lands  would  certainly  go 
higher  in  their  opinion,  and  ho  was  inclined  to  agree  with 
them.  '-  Of  course,  one  can  not  look  into  the  future,"  he 
added,  "■  but  every  thing  points  to  a  big  yield  of  cotton  the 
present  year.  I  have  never  made  less  than  seven  hundred 
and  fifty  bales  on  the  Hebron  plantation.  It  is,  as  you  see, 
magnificently  equipped,  and  is  safe  from  overflow."  Not- 
withstanding my  addled  brain,  I  was  able  to  see  that, 
whether  Hampson  meant  it  or  not,  he  seemed  perfectly  in- 
difi'erent  as  to  whether  we  took  the  place  or  not. 

"I  have  offered  it  to  you,  and  will  of  course  hold  to  it, 
but,  if  I  had  not  already  done  that,  I  am  not  at  this  moment 
prepared  to  say,  as  things  look,  whether  I  would  name  a 
price.  As  for  taking  less,  I  could  not  entertain  such  a 
thought  for  an  instant." 

The  liquor  in  our  brains  relinquished  its  hold  long 
enough  to  enable  us  to  make  the  sane  answer — that  we 
would  send  him  our  decision  in  writing  from  the  wharf- 
boat.  Of  course  our  minds  were  already  made  up,  but  in 
our  sober  moments  we  fancied  we  had  concealed  that  fact 
from  Hampson,  and  this  answer  we  thought  would  further 
conceal  it  from  him,  knowing  as  he  must  that  it  was  n  res- 
olution taken  while  we  were  not  exactly  steady  on  our  feet 
— just  in  that  condition  when  we  would  be  likely  to  say 
precisely  what  was  in  our  minds.  Our  answer,  however, 
did  not  stagger  Hampson  in  the  least, — he  simply  replied  : 


68  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

"Take  your  own  time,  gentlemen,"  and  so  we  bowed  our- 
selves out. 

A  few  moments  in  the  open  air  steadied  our  nerves  and 
cooled  our  brains.  Dobson  looked  at  me  curiously  and  I 
returned  the  look,  saying:  "Dobson,  we  have  both  been 
drunk,"  and  he  replied,  looking  sheepishly,  "  A  little  tipsy." 
Then  we  tried  to  gather  up  our  thoughts,  to  see  how  far  we 
had  committed  ourselves,  and  just  how  foolish  we  had  been 
and  then,  just  as  many  another  man  does  who  has  fallen 
into  the  same  snare,  we  felt  very  cheap  over  it  all,  and 
thought  how  Hampson  might  tell  the- story  of  our  discom- 
forture  to  his  friends,  and  how  they  would  all  laugh  at  it. 
There  was  one  consolation,  however, — if  Hampson  had 
started  out  to  do  it,  which,  of  course,  he  had  not,  by  plying 
us  with  drink,  he  had  not  succeeded  in  getting  us  committed 
to  the  purchase  of  the  Hebron  plantation. 

In  my  eagerness  in  the  morning,  I  had  failed  to  notice  the 
village  at  the  landing.  Now,  as  we  walked  leisurely  back, 
I  looked  around  for  it.  I  had  asked  Pompey  in  the 
morning,  what  was  the  population  of  the  Lake,  meaning 
the  village,  and  his  answer  was  : 

"  Fishes." 

Pompey  was  not  much  out  of  the  way,  so  far  as  I  could 
see  of  any  town  (if  I  had  seen  it,  as  I  did  afterwards, 
in  the  midst  of  overflow,  I  should  have  said  he  was  per- 
fectly correct). 

The  fact  is,  like  all  the  river  towns,  except  Memphis, 
Yicksburg,  Natchez,  Baton -Eouge,  and  New  Orleans,  as  we 
learned  later,  it  was  simply  a  river  landing,  with  a  dozen 
or  so  of  houses,  including  the  inevitable  bar-rooms,  a  couple 
of  general  assortment  stores,  and  a  drug-store — all  needing 
paint  or  whitewash.  But  the  buildings,  all  told,  did  not 
make  any  more  show  than  those  on  the  Hebi'on  plantation 
would  if  they  had  been  huddled  together.  A  two-story 
building,  used  as  one  of  the  store-rooms,  with  a  ragged  hole 
in  its  river  front — the  mark  of  a  gun-boat  shell — and  a 


WE  PURCHASED  TOE  HEBRON  PLANTATION.       69 

church  edifice,  with  a  tall  spire,  were  the  two  prominent 
features  of  the  village.  The  population  could  not  have 
numbered  over  two  hundred,  and  as  for  the  people  them- 
selves, there  were  many  shabby  specimens  among  them. 

I  had  yet  to  learn  that  a  large  part  of  the  people  congre- 
gated in  these  river  towns  were  of  the  objectionable  classes 
of  society  ;  that  gambling,  drunkenness  and  crime  were 
here  established  institutions;  that  these  places  were,  in 
fact,  so  many  stations  on  the  river  where  the  offscourings 
of  all  countries  swarmed ;  where  order,  peace  and  good 
morals  were  openly  defied — and  some  times  law  itself;  that 
they  always  cursed  the  neighborhood  for  miles  around 
them  by  their  baneful  influence  upon  the  youth,  and  upon 
those  of  maturer  years,  to  be  found,  alas,  every-where, 
who  were  without  the  power  to  successfully  resist  temp- 
tation. 

A  sight,  which  absolutely  thrilled  me  with  horror,  was  the 
village  grave-yard,  without  the  sign  of  a  fence  around  it, 
and  a  drove  of  hogs  rooting  among  the  graves  !  It  was 
located  where  every  body  must  either  pass  it  daily,  or  if 
they  stepped  out  of  their  doors  could  not  fail  to  see  it,  and 
yet  not  a  hand  was  lifted  to  save  it  from  the  ravages  which 
were  being  made  upon  it. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

WE  PURCHASE  THE  HEBRON  PLANTATION. 

Back  upon  the  wharf-boat,  we  proceeded  to  compare  im- 
pressions. This  was  a  mere  matter  of  form,  however,  for 
my  commitment  to  the  Dobson  scheme  was,  as  a  simple 
fiict,  if  the  truth  must  be  told,  the  purchase  of  the  Hebron 
plantation,  and  in  one  sense,  that  is  so  far  as  I  could  make 


70  A   YEAR   OP   WRECK. 

it  SO,  it  was  as  much  ours  from  that  day  as  it  would  be 
after  the  deed  was  drawn  and  the  money  paid  over.  We 
were  now  going  through  the  formalities,  of  which  our 
coming  down  to  look  at  tbe  place  was  one.  Of  course  we 
would  not  have  been  willing  at  the  time  to  have  acknowl- 
edged so  much — that  would  not  have  been  business, — but 
nevertheless  it  was  true,  and  we  knew  it. 

In  short,  we  should  have  done  quite  as  well,  so  far  as 
there  was  any  display  of  judgment  on  our  part  after  we 
saw  Hebron,  to  have  simply  replied  to  Hamj^son's  commu- 
nication that  we  would  take  the  place,  and  then  brought 
our  outfit  with  our  purchase  money,  and  gone  immediately 
to  work,  thus  saving  the  expense  of  one  journey  and 
getting  started  earlier  in  the  season. 

We  employed  no  experts  to  look  over  the  fields  with  us, 
but  simply  swallowed  every  thing  Hampson  told  us  from 
beginning  to  end;  and,  the  fact  is,  in  our  mood,  we  would 
have  bought  any  thing  that  any  man  calling  himself  Hamp- 
son might  have  pointed  out  to  us  as  the  Hebron  plantation, 
even  if  it  had  been  the  very  place  which  a  later  comer 
purchased,  and,  while  making  an  examination  of  it, 
asked  the  owner  if  it  overflowed,  when  he  was  told  to  ex- 
amine the  trees  and  see  if  he  could  find  any  water-lines 
on  them.  He  peered  around  the  roots  and  several  inches 
up  the  sides  of  the  trees,  and  could  see  no  marks,  con- 
cluded the  place  was  safe,  and  purchased  it,  when,  poor 
fool,  if  he  had  looked  fifteen  feet  up  the  sides  of  the  trees, 
he  would  have  seen  the  marks  of  annual  overflow  very 
distinctly  ! 

It  is  true,  I  remember  to  have  reasoned,  in  the  effort  to 
excuse  myself  for  what  I  knew  to  be  our  unbusiness-like 
course, — we  are,  as  it  were,  in  the  enemy's  country,  and  to 
whom  could  we  safely  go  ?  What  assurance  had  we  that 
any  opinion  we  might  purchase  would  not  be  the  veriest 
deception  ?     We  had  heard  much  of  Southern  honor,  was 


WE  PURCHASED  THE  HEBRON  PLANTATION.       71 

it  not  safer  to  trust  to  that?     Yes,  if  any  thing  was  safe, 
that  was. 

Besides,  Hampson  did  not  really  seem  to  want  to  sell  the 
place,  which  of  itself  was  some  assurance,  on  the  principle 
that  an  article  which  the  possessor  would  like  to  keep  is 
safe  to  purchase.  There  had  been  no  effort  on  his  part  to 
deceive  us,  and  then  did  we  not  remember  that  nearly  every- 
body to  whom  we  had  been  introduced  on  the  boat  in  the 
morning  had  said  something  in  praise  of  this  plantation? 
The  host  himself  had  been  enthusiastic  on  the  subject  of 
its  good  qualities. 

"When  all  at  home  agreed  so  thoroughly,  there  should  no 
longer  be  any  doubt  in  the  mind  of  a  stranger.  Most  of 
these  who  had  spoken  so  highly  were  planters  themselves, 
and  what  better  recommendation  could  we  have  than  the 
favorable  opinion  of  men  in  the  same  line  of  business  ? 

We  knew  perfectly  well  that  the  price  was  a  good  round 
one,  but  if  the  future  was  what  w^as  predicted  for  it,  it 
would  soon  be  cheap.  It  was  certainly  better  economy  to 
buy  the  land  outright,  at  seventy-five  dollars  an  acre,  than 
to  pay  from  ten  to  twenty-five  dollars  an  acre  rent  for  a 
single  year,  as  many  of  the  new-comers  were  doing. 

There  could  be  no  question  about  its  being  good  land, 
though  it  did  not  look  very  prepossessing  with  its  enormous 
vegetable  growth  all  over  it,  but  that  told  of  a  rich  soil  be- 
neath. It  was  also  on  the  highway  of  the  Mississippi,  in 
the  heart  of  the  cotton  region.  It  was  not  cheap  land,  be- 
cause it  was  not  in  a  cheap  locality.  It  was  in  short  to 
plantations  in  general,  what  property  on  Broadway,  New 
York,  was  to  New  York  itself;  property  there  brought  big 
figures,  but  it  never  went  begging  for  a  purchaser.  So  it 
was  and  would  be  with  this  class  of  plantation  property. 

Ilaving  thus  reasoned  to  ourselves  that  we  should  be 
safe  in  making  this  purchase,  we  then  wrote  a  formal 
note  to  General  Hampson,  saying  that  we  would  take  the 
place  on    his  terms,  and  Pompey  was  detailed  to  deliver  it. 


72  A    YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

Thus  the  Dobson  scheme  was  an  accomplished  fact. 
What  we  should  have  done  now,  was  to  employ  a  la^vJ'er 
to  examine  the  title,  and  an  engineer  to  measure  the  place. 
But  we  did  neither.  So  far  as  the  title  went,  Hamj^son 
himself  was  a  lawyer,  and  there  was  no  question  but  that 
he  could  and  would  make  us  a  good  deed,  we  thought,  and 
then  there  recurred  our  feeling  of  distrust  of  the  people  in 
whose  midst  we  were  about  to  locate.  We  fancied  we  had 
already  seen  a  something, — perhaps  it  was  the  universal 
praise  of  the  place  we  had  just  bargained  for,  looking  as  if 
each  man  were  acting  as  Hampson's  agent ;  perhaps  it  was 
their  habit  of  huddling  together  and  talking  in  a  low  tone 
of  voice,  looking  at  us,  as  if  we  were  the  topic  ;  and  yet 
just  what  it  was,  we  could  not  have  defined: — it  made  us 
feel,  however,  that  we  were  dealing  with  a  close  corpora- 
tion, that  what  was  the  opinion  of  one,  was  the  opinion  of 
all ;  and  if  we  were  to  be  sold  out,  would  it  not  be  better 
to  be  sold  trusting  to  the  honor  of  men  than  after  we  had 
bought  their  opinions  ? 

We  might  pay  five  hundred  dollars  to  an  attorney  to  ex- 
amine as  to  the  title,  or  the  same  amount  to  an  engineer 
for  measurement  of  the  land  ;  but  would  not  there  still  be 
an  uncertainty  as  to  whether  we  were  getting  faithful  ser- 
vice ?  So  we  decided  to  trust  to  the  honor  of  the  man  we 
had  to  deal  with,  to  his  assurance  that  his  deed  was  a  good 
one,  and  that  all  the  land  was  there  it  called  for. 

It  was  a  hazardous  experiment,  but  we  could  see  no  other 
course  open  for  us,  and  so  we  made  our  first  payment  of 
twenty-seven  thousand  dollars,  gave  our  notes  for  the  bal- 
ance, and  took  the  deed.  We  felt  a  decided  shock  in  this 
operation  (which  consumed  the  better  part  of  two  days, 
and  at  least  six  whisky-toddies)  when  Hampson  told  us  it 
was  the  custom  of  the  country  for  the  purchaser  to  pay  for 
the  cost  of  making  the  deed,  and  then  the  notary,  a  broad- 
shouldered,  smiling  personage,  said  the  bill  was  three  hun- 
dred and  seventy-five  dollars — one  hundred  and  fifty  dol- 


WE  PURCHASE  THE  HEBRON  PLANTATION.       7o 

lars  of  which  was  his  fee,  and  two  hundred  and  twenty-five 
dollars  for  the  "  Yankee  "  government. 

Ilere  were  three  hundred  and  seventy-five  dollars  not  in- 
cluded in  the  Dobson  estimate.  It  did  not  look  reasonable 
that  we  should  pay  this.  It  was  Hampson's  deed,  not  ours  ; 
but  he  assured  us  on  his  honor  as  a  man  that  it  was  for  us 
to  pay,  and  then  appealed  to  the  notary,  who  said  there 
was  no  question  about  it,  so  we  reluctantly  paid  the 
amount. 

There  being  no  residence  on  the  place,  what  to  do  for  a 
house  for  our  families  to  live  in  was  a  question.  We  could 
not  think  of  taking  them  into  the  overseer's  cabin,  even  if 
it  was  a  "  snug  place." 

In  our  dilemma,  we  consulted  Captain  Tyler. 

He  thought  for  a  moment,  and  then  asked  us  if  we  had 
noticed  on  our  way  toHambleton  a  pleasant-looking  house. 

"  Yes,"  we  replied,  "  but  that  will  be  two  miles  away  from 
our  business." 

"Ah  !  well,  you  will  of  course  have  an  overseer ;  your 
duty  will  be  that  of  general  supervision,  which  you  can 
attend  to  as  well  at  that  distance  as  if  you  were  on  the 
ground.  This  house  will  just  suit  you,  I  think,  and  is  at 
present  unoccupied.  It  will  need  some  repairs,  no  doubt. 
I  will  try  and  see  the  owner,  if  you  wish  it." 

We  said  we  would  thank  him  if  he  would  do  so,  and  the 
next  morning  Tyler  introduced  us. 

"Yes,  I  su2:)pose  the  house  is  for  rent." 

"At  what  price  ?" 

"  Well,  I  will  have  to  ask  you,"  thinking  for  a  moment, 
"at  the  rate  of  from  eight  hundred  to  one  thousand  dollars 
per  annum,  and  will  allow  two  hundred  for  repairs." 

Notwithstanding  this  extortionate  demand,  we  concluded 

to  take  it,  as  all  hands  were  of  the  opinion  that  this  was 

our  only  chance,  and  really  wo  were  quite  fortunate,  they 

all  said  with  one  voice,  to  be  able  to  get  it.     It  was  ap- 

4 


74  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

parently  understood  that  we  should  rent  this  house,  and 
every  energy  was  bent  in  that  direction. 

"  Do  you  wish  to  draw  up  papers  of  lease?" 

"No;  my  word  is  good  as  my  bond,"  with  a  little  fire 
in  his  eye. 

"  We  did  not  doubt  that,"  we  said,  "  and  only  suggested 
it  because  it  was  considered  the  business  course." 

Tyler  introduced  us  to  a  gentleman  by  the  name  of  Dis- 
tom — Colonel  Distom  he  called  him — who,  he  said,  had 
rai&ed  a  crop  of  cotton  the  year  before  in  the  neighborhood, 
and  who  had  just  formed  a  partnership  with  a  new-comer 
to  plant  a  large  place  in  the  rear  of  the  Hebron  plantation. 

"  You  will  want  cotton-seed  for  planting,"  Tyler  said, 
'  and  you  have  an  abundance  of  good  seed,  have  you  not. 
Colonel?" 

"  Oh,  yes,  I  have  plenty  of  it." 

"  Will  you  sell  us  our  supply  ?" 

"  To  be  sure,  it  is  for  sale." 

"At  what  price  ?" 

"At  the  market-i^rice,  whatever  that  is  at  the  time  you 
want  the  seed." 

"How  much  seed  will  it  take  to  plant  nine  hundred 
acres  ?" 

"  Fifteen  hundred  bushels  will  be  ample." 

"  AYill  you  engage  to  let  us  have  that  quantity  ?" 

"  Certainly." 

"  We  will  consider  it  a  contract,  then,  and  will  send  our 
wagons  for  the  seed  whenever  we  need  it  for  planting,  pay- 
ing you  for  it  then." 

"That  is  all  right." 

"  Shall  we  reduce  our  understanding  to  writing?" 

"  Oh,  no ;  my  word  is  as  good  as  my  bond.  You  will  cer- 
tainly get  the  seed  whenever  you  send  for  it." 

We  asked  Tyler  where  we  had  best  have  our  freight  Ian  ded , 
at  our  plantation -landing,  or  at  his  wharf-boat? 


WE  FORM  A  CO-PARTNERSntP  AND  SELECT  OUR  LABOR.    75 

"  Oil,  at  my  wharf- boat,  by  all  means.     I  will  take  good 
care  of  it." 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

WE   FORM    A   CO-PARTNERSHIP   AND   SELECT   OUR   LABOR. 

On  our  return,  we  called  Gale  and  Johnson  together,  and 
made  our  report. 

Gale,  being  a  lawyer,  it  was  arranged  that  he  should 
draw  up  the  articles  of  partnership,  which  he  did,  having 
them  handsomely  copied,  and  fastened  with  an  abundance 
of  blue  ribbon.  Mechanically  speaking,  the  document  was 
very  handsome,  and  as  an  exhaustive  article  on  partner- 
ships complete.  The  amounts  specified  ran  up  into  that 
enchanting  atmosphere  of  hundreds  of  thousands,  making 
it  a  luxurious  affair.  A  national  bank,  or  local  fire  insur- 
ance company,  alongside  of  it,  would  have  to  take  a  back- 
seat. 

Dobson  and  myself  were  to  receive  the  same  salary — 
fifteen  hundred  dollars  per  annum ;  Johnson's  was  to  be  a 
thousand. 

As  I  walked  home  with  my  copy  of  the  articles  of  part- 
nership, to  show  to  Mrs.  Harding,  I  felt  again  as  1  did 
Avhcn,  first  made  a  party  to  the  Dobson  scheme,  I  had  trav- 
eled this  same  route. 

Again  I  chanced  to  see  Mr.  Cooper  in  his  bank  window. 
Our  enterprise  was  now  established,  and  the  temptation 
came  over  me  to  show  him  what  we  proposed  to  do.  I  did 
so,  and  when  he  had  gone  over  it  all,  and  looked  up  at  me 
through  his  sagacious  spectacles,  I  inquired : 

"  What  do  you  think  of  it?" 

'•  Cut  it  in  two  in  the  middle,  and  divide  that  by  half, 


76  A   YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

and  you  '11  be  nearer  the  mark,"  he  answered  curtly,  though 
pleasantly. 

"  Why  so  ?"  I  asked,  a  little  nettled  over  his  estimate. 

"  Just  on  the  principle  that  these  enterprises  never  do 
any  more  than  that,  and  seldom  as  much,"  he  replied,  with 
great  good  common  sense  glowing  in  his  expressive  coun- 
tenance. 

"  Well,  there  are  exceptions  to  all  rules,"  I  said,  spiritedly, 
"  and  I  defy  any  one  to  find  a  flaw  in  the  Dobson  estimate. 
Wish  us  well,  anyhow," 

"  Oh,  I  do  that  with  all  my  heart." 

Mr.  Cooper's  opinion  was  a  wet  blanket,  and  I  felt  mvry 
I  had  called  on  him.  I  shook  my  head  viciously  as  I  passed 
out  of  .his  bank,  thinking,  '-I  will  show  j'ou  whether  the 
Dobson  estimate  is  to  be  cut  in  two,  and  then  halved.  For 
once,  Mr.  Cooper,  you  are  simply  mistaken."  For  a  con- 
siderable time  afterward  I  held  a  grudge  toward  him. 

We  had  discussed  the  subject  of  labor  during  our  return 
journey,  and  concluded  as  follows  : 

First.  There  were,  as  we  had  seen,  quite  a  number  of 
negroes  on  the  plantation,  and  although  we  had  not  talked 
with  them,  we  presumed  we  could  get  their  services. 
They  were,  no  doubt,  a  portion  of  the  former  slaves  of  the 
place,  and  were  attached  to  it,  and  from  their  knowledge 
of  it,  and  cotton-planting,  they  would  be  very  valuable  to 
US.  Cato  and  James  were  among  the  number,  they  who  had 
saved  Hampson's  large  interest  from  injury.  AVhat  better 
recommendation  could  we  have  ?  Undoubtedly  these  two 
were  choice  hands,  and  being  also,  as  Hampson  said,  lead- 
ers, they  would  hardly  be  likely  to  have  any  but  the  same 
class  about  them.  We  thought  we  could  count  with  con- 
fidence on  engaging  this  lot  of  laborers. 

Second.  AVe  determined  to  try  some  white  labor. 

Third.  We  would  carry  down  with  us  a  squad  of 
negroes. 


WE  FORM  A  CO-PARTNERSniP  AND  SELECT  OUR  LxVBOR.     77 

In  order  to  have  tliese  go  forward  with  oar  outfit,  we 
posted  a  hand-bill  immediately,  containing  such  specifica- 
tions as  these : 

"  Wanted  ! 

"  White  and  colored  labor  for  a  cotton-plantation. 

•'  Good  wages  will  be  paid. 

"  None  but  farm-hands  need  apply. 

"  Office  at ,  for  ten  days." 

Johnson  was  stationed  as  recruiting  agent,  and  within 
the  ten  days  he  selected,  from  not  less  than  two  hundred 
applicants,  twenty-five  of  each  color,  all  of  whom  declared 
themselves  to  be  farmers. 

The  idea  was  to  take  the  black  people  from  that  class 
known  as  "  contrabands,"  meaning  the  former  slaves  who 
had  drifted  North  during  the  war.  These  people,  we  rea- 
soned, had  found  a  climate  illy  suited  to  them,  and  compe- 
tition for  day-labor  very  great,  and  even  if  the  best  of 
them  managed  to  put  away  a  little  money,  and  but  here 
and  there  one  could  do  that  much,  during  the  warm  months, 
it  was  all  gone  before  spring,  so  that  they  would  only  bo 
too  glad  of  an  opportunity  to  get  back  South. 

There  could  certainly  be  no  hazard  in  taking  down  this 
class,  who  would  be  thoroughly  cured  of  that  nameless 
longing  for  breathing  the  Northern  air,  and  of  that  absurd 
idea  that  in  the  country  whence  the  "Yankees"  came,  no 
labor  was  required.  In  short,  we  thought  this  Northern 
discipline  would  in  every  way  fit  them  the  better  to  per- 
form the  labor  devolving  on  them  as  free  men. 

The  white  labor  was  an  experiment.  A  general  agree- 
ment was  drawn  up  which  each  one  as  he  was  accepted 
was  required  to  sign,  to  the  efi'ect  that  for  the  purpose  of 
raising  a  crop  of  cotton  and  corn  on  the  Hebron  plantation, 
the  undersigned  engaged  themselves  for  the  year  1866,  at 
such  wages  as  were  customary  in  the  neighborhood,  one- 
half  in  cash  monthly,  the  balance  at  the  end  of  the  3'ear, — 
the  weekly  ration   to   be  four  pounds  of  pork,  a  peck  of 


78  A   YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

meal  and  a  pint  of  molasses  ;  the  whites  to  have  six  pounds 
of  flour  in  lieu  of  the  meal,  with  a  ration  of  coffee  and 
sugar,  and  either  rice,  hominy  or  potatoes. 

A  more  ragged  or  hungrier-looking  set  than  the  black  peo- 
ple engaged  would  be  difficult  to  find,  and  as  the  weather  was 
very  cold,  they  appeared  half  frozen.  It  was  a  sorry  sight. 
But  if  they  were,  as  they  all  asserted,  cotton-hands,  their 
condition  was  rather  in  their  favor,  viewed  as  discipline. 
Stepping  from  the  fitful  support  of  an  occasional  job,  into 
steady  occupation,  the  very  kind  to  which  they  had  been 
reared,  would  naturally  make  contented  laborers  of  them. 
Getting  back  to  their  country  again  would  soon  thaw  them 
out ;  then  their  hunger  would  be  appeased,  and  very 
shortly  their  wages  would  enable  them  to  shed  their  rags. 

We  felt  that  we  had  a  prize  in  this  lot  of  hands.  True, 
we  had  to  take  their  simple  statement  that  they  were 
cotton-hands.  Being  perfectly  ignorant  of  the  mode  of 
raising  cotton,  we  could  ask  them  no  questions  that  would 
settle  their  status  in  this  respect.  If  they  were  impostors^ 
it  would  only  come  out  when  they  were  put  to  the  test  on 
the  plantation.  It  was  hazardous  not  to  be  satisfied  on  this 
point,  but  every  thing  has  its  risk,  and  this  was  the  risk  in 
the  present  case,  because  if  they  were  cotton-hands  there 
could  be  nothing  else  against  them,  and  with  their  rough 
experience  in  the  North,  if  negroes  proved  any  sort  of  a  suc- 
cess as  free  cotton  laborers,  these  would  be  2:>ar  excellence. 

What  mattered  it  if  their  skin  had,  from  exposure  and 
poor  food,  assumed  a  dull,  dingy  hue  ?  What  mattered  it 
if  they  persisted  in  hugging  the  fire,  and  pulling  their  rags 
closer  about  them,  showing  but  little  life,  and  not  a  vein  of 
their  wonted  humor?  A  short  time  under  their  sunny 
Southern  sky  would  make  them  as  much  the  Sambo  as  ever. 
A  few  days  in  the  cotton -field  and  regular  rations  of  pork 
and  meal  would  put  the  shine  of  health  to  their  skin,  and 
fill  their  mouths  with  the  plantation  melodies  of  old. 

Yes,  it  was  the  cotton-field  they  were  pining  for — that 


AVE  FORM  A  CO-PARTNERSHIP  AND  SELECT  OUR  LABOR,     70 

would  put  them  on  their  feet  again.  Were  we  not,  then, 
while  serving  ourselves  so  well,  also  acting  a  good  part 
toward  the  poor  black  people,  in  carrj'ing  them  back  to  a 
congenial  climate  and  occupation,  from  which  they  had,  as 
it  were,  strayed?  Now  that  slavery  was  no  more,  these 
people  would,  as  a  class,  sooner  or  later,  drift  there. 

We  were  simply  piQn££u:s_in  the  enterprise  of  starting 
this  tide  of  immigration,  which  was  just  as  essentail  to  the 
prosperity  of  the  Southern  country  as  was  capital  itself 
Slavery  had  been  the  only  system  of  labor.  That  being 
abolished  rendered  the  creation  of  a  system  necessary. 
The  slaves  themselves  would  form  largclj^  the  material  for 
this  first  effort.  Just  to  the  extent  that  they  were  a  success 
would  the  country  itself  be  a  success,  and  if  thev  were  a 
success — of  which  there  was  little  or  no  doubt — every 
one  that  could  be  induced  to  go  there  would  be  so  much 
wealth  to  the  country. 

Whichever  way  we  might  view  it,  then,  we  felt  we  were 
making  no  mistake  in  taking  the  black  people  down  with 
us,  although  it  was  barely  possible  we  might  be  deceived 
in  those  we  had  selected, 

Naturally,  if  black  labor  was  just  the  thing  for  us,  white 
labor  was  not  the  thing. 

There  were  arguments,  however,  in  favor  of  white  labor, 
chief  of  which  was  that  our  boys  in  the  army  had  cam- 
paigned through  the  swamps  of  the  South  with  a  very 
small  percentage  of  sickness.  If  they  could  stand  a  sum- 
mer's campaign  there,  or,  for  that  matter,  several  summerr^, 
could  they  not  stand  a  summer  in  the  cotton-field  ? — and  if 
they  were  able  to  get  through  the  season  without  sickness, 
what  could  not  be  accomplished  with  industrious,  stout- 
hearted, intelligent  Northern  farmers  ? 

They  would  know  nothing  about  cotton-raising,  but  it 
was,  perhaps,  not  ver}^  different  from  corn,  or  other  prod- 
ucts with  which  they  were  perfectly  familiar,  and  they 
would  learn  as  the  season  progressed. 


80  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

If  white  labor  should  prove  a  success,  the  question  of 
labor  was  at  once  settled  forever.  It  was  at  least  worth  a 
trial. 

We  were  a  little  shaky  when  we  saw  our  lot  of  twenty- 
five,  though  they  all  stoutly  declared  they  were  born 
farmers. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

WE  TAKE  OUR  DEPARTURE  FOR  THE  HEBRON  PLANTATION. 

About  this  time,  we  received  a  letter  from  an  individ- 
ual in  the  South,  soliciting  the  position  of  overseer.  He 
furnished  good  references,  and  offered  to  serve  us  for  twelve 
hundred  dollars  a  year. 

Tyler  said  we  should  want  an  overseer.  I  mentally  re- 
j)udiated  the  idea  at  the  time,  knowing  that  Dobson's  state- 
ment had  not  mentioned  this  want ;  but  neither  had  it 
mentioned  four  thousand  dollars  in  salaries  to  the  members 
of  the  firm  who  were  to  superintend  the  enterprise,  nor  a 
thousand  dollars  or  more  for  cotton-seed,  nor  a  thousand 
dollars  for  house-rent ;  and  now  here  was  a  chance  to  spend 
twelve  hundred  dollars  more.  Altogether,  I  began  to  fear 
that  Dobson's  statement  was  not  infallible,  but,  then,  what 
were  a  few  thousand  dollars,  he  said,  when  I  mildl}-  hinted 
my  doubt,  when  the  margin  of  profit  was  so  great  ? 

So  we  called  a  meeting  of  the  firm,  and  it  was  decided, 
in  view  of  our  inexperience,  etc.,  we  had  better  have  an 
overseer.  To  save  twelve  hundred  dollars,  we  might  haz- 
ard many  thousands.  At  least  for  the  first  year,  and  in 
view  of  our  white  labor  project,  we  had  better  have  the  ex- 
perience of  a  practical  planter  ;  after  that,  we  could  do  as 
we  pleased.     Every  thing   depended  on  our  making  the 


WE  TAKE  OUR  DEPARTURE  FOR  HEBRON  PLANTATION.  81 

right  start.  So  the  overseer  was  engaged,  to  report  for 
duty  at  a  date  named. 

At  the  almost  daily  government  auction  sales  of  surplus 
army  equipments,  in  different  parts  of  the  countrj^  were  of- 
fered many  articles  included  in  our  list  of  wants.  A  sale  of 
this  kind  at  Lexington,  Kentucky,  came  off  just  at  the  right 
time,  and  so,  thinking  to  make  some  cheap  purchases,  and 
thus  help  out  the  Dobson  estimate,  which,  it  was  plain  to 
be  seen,  was  pulling  down  the  wrong  side  of  the  scale,  I 
took  a  trip  to  Lexington,  but,  beyond  having  knocked 
down  to  me  the  wreck  of  a  wagon,  a  few  incomplete  sets  of 
harness,  and  trace-chains  enough  to  stock  half  a  dozen  plan- 
tations, I  accomplished  nothing — returning  in  great  dis- 
gust over  my  fool's  errand.  My  only  consolation  was,  that 
I  found  numbers  of  parties  who  were  going  South  as  we 
were,  and  who,  like  myself,  had  seized  upon  this  oppor- 
tunity to  buy  bargains,  and  bad  shared  my  fate. 

Our  mules  were,  however,  the  result  of  a  government 
auction  sale,  though  we  purchased  them  second-hand,  hav- 
ing to  pay  the  usual  middle-man's  profit.  The  rest  of 
our  outfit  we  purchased  in  Cincinnati,  with  the  exception 
of  a  few  "improved"  plows,  bought  after  much  persuasion 
at  a  home  manufactory,  and  which  were  sold  us  at  whole- 
sale rates,  as  an  inducement  for  our  introducing  them  ;  our 
swingle-trees  and  double-trees,  which  a  home  blacksmith 
insisted  on  making  for  us ;  and  our  stock  of  medicines, 
which  came  from  our  own  drug-store. 

Two  afternoon  freight-cars,  for  our  mules,  and  a  second- 
class  night-car,  on  the  same  day,  for  our  hands,  conveyed 
our  outfit  to  Cincinnati,  just  in  time  to  strike  the  "May- 
flower," bound  for  New  Orleans  and  way-landings.  I  went 
down  to  Cincinnati  to  see  the  enterprise  off,  though  Adju- 
tant Johnson  was  in  immediate  command,  and  would  con- 
tinue so,  accompanying  the  expedition  to  the  plantation,  I 
having  to  return  for  my  family. 

Dobson  had  left,  immediately  after  the  arrangement  of 
4* 


82  A   YEAR   OP   WRECK. 

our  partnership,  to  join  bis  wife,  who  was  enjoying  the 
gayeties  of  the  Washington  season.  They  would  follow  on 
later.  It  was  arranged  that  on  my  arrival  at  Hebron  I 
should  look  around,  and,  whatever  I  discovered  lacking,  1 
should  notify  Dobson,  when  he  would  bring  it  down  with 
him.  Until  he  heard  from  me,  he  was  to  remain  at  our 
home,  after  his  return  from  Washington. 

After  waving  an  adieu  to  the  "  Mayflower  "  as  she  pushed 
out  from  the  Cincinnati  wharf  with  our  valuable  cargo 
on  board,  getting  my  last  glimpse  of  that  little  hero,  Adju- 
tant Johnson,  I  hurried  back  home,  spoke  hasty  farewells 
to  the  relatives  and  friends  we  were  leaving  behind,  and 
with  my  little  family  steamed  away  from  a  spot  where  we 
had  seen  so  many  happy  years.  How  I  should  have  clung 
to  that  parting  hour  if  1  could  have  read  the  future  ! 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

OUR   VOYAGE   DOWN    THE   MISSISSIPPI    RIVER. 

We  avoided  the  tubular  boilers  this  time  at  Cairo,  wait- 
ing a  whole  day  for  a  boat  with  old-fashioned  boilers,  which 
finally  came  along  in  the  shape  of  the  "  Mary  E.  Forsythe." 

Our  trip  down  the  river  is  one  of  the  most  agreeable 

memories  of  our  lives,  and  if  that  good  old  Captain 

is  yet  living,  and  should  chance  to  read  these  lines,  I  thank 
him  again  for  his  kindness  to  us. 

Among  the  passengers  were  Colonel  Graham  and  his 
charming  wife,  from  Indiana,  on  their  way  to  settle  on  a 
plantation  only  a  dozen  miles  below  us.  There  was  Colonel 
Jordan,  a  brother-in-law  of  the  Confederate  Secretary  of 
War,  and  a  sugar-planter  from  lower  Louisiana,  on  his  way 


OUR   VOYAGE    DOWN    THE    MISSISSIPPI   RIVER.  83 

home  -with  his  fiiniily  after  their  long  stay  in  Virginia 
during  the  rebellion.  What  a  genial,  whole-souled  gentle- 
man he  proved  to  be  !  And  his  motherless  children — though 
hardly  motherless,  because  of  the  devotion  of  their  father's 
niece — what  pattern  children  they  were,  with  their  Creole 
cast  of  features ! 

Here  were  a  people  with  no  drop  of  so-called  North- 
ern blood  in  their  veins — they  well  knew  we  had  no 
drop  of  so-called  Southern  blood  in  ours  ;  and  yet  their 
hearts  were  in  their  mouths,  and  they  were  overflowing 
with  kindly  feeling  for  us. 

Colonel  and  Mrs.  Jacobs,  of  Mississippi,  were  also  pas- 
sengers. They,  too,  were  native  Southerners,  and  yet  they 
displayed  not  a  jot  of  prejudice  towards  those  of  us  from 
the  Xorth. 

No  more  cordial  reception  could  possibly  have  been 
given  than  that  accorded  to  us  by  these  and  other  delight- 
ful steamboat  acquaintances — people  of  the  South — on  the 
threshold,  as  it  were,  of  our  Southern  experience.  There 
was  not  the  least  show  of  clannishness  about  them ;  wo 
danced,  sang,  played  whist,  visited  the  pilot-house,  sat  in 
the  Captain's  room  in  the  texas,  vexed  the  clerk  with  our 
questions,  and  took  the  breezes  on  the  forecastle,  together, 
as  if  we  were  one  family. 

IIow  like  oil  this  cordial  reception  seemed  to  us,  too,  with 
our  recent  wounds  of  separation  from  relatives  and  friends  ! 
Scarce  had  we  bidden  adieu  to  a  circle  which  in  the  hour 
of  parting  we  felt  could  never  be  duplicated,  when  these 
new  associations  were  formed,  commanding  not  only  friend- 
ship, but  really  stirring  the  fountain  of  affection.  Scarcely 
had  we  severed  the  old  bonds,  which  held  us  as  with 
hooks  of  steel,  when  a  silken  cord  was  thrown  around  us, 
and  we  felt  almost  guilty  when  we  stopped  a  moment  and 
thought  that  the  pangs  of  parting  from  the  old  life-long 
associations  were   fiist  resolving  themselves  into  pleasant 


84  A   YEAR   or    WRECK. 

memories,  ■while  we  were  basking  in  the  sunshine  of  this 
new  life. 

Such  was  our  experience  on  this  voyage  ;  but  it  was  the 
hour  of  sunshine  before  the  long,  weary  season  of  storm. 
We  were  shortly  to  step  upon  an  inhospitable  shore,  where 
blows  would  be  dealt  at  us  from  every  direction  ;  the  greet- 
ing at  our  coming  was  to  be  but  a  continued  insult — we 
were  to  be  looked  upon  either  as  a  common  enemy,  or,  at 
best,  simply  tolerated. 

At  Memphis,  the  following  letter  from  Adjutant  Johnson 
awaited  us : 

"  On  Board  Steamer  Mayflower,  ) 
"  Memphis,  January  24,  1866.      ] 

"  My  Dear  Sir  : — Just  as  the  boat  is  about  to  push  out, 
I  send  off  this  line  to  let  you  know  that  we  are  so  far  on 
our  way  with  no  serious  occurrence. 

''  The  weather  has  been  bright  and  cold.  As  a  conse- 
quence, the  black  people,  as  deck-passengers,  have  suffered 
considerably.  Three  of  them  jumped  me  at  Cairo,  and  I 
find,  on  counting  noses,  that  I  've  only  sixteen  whites  left. 
It  looks  a  little  as  if  there  was  a  trick  out  on  the  part  of 
the  missing  ones  to  get  their  fare  paid  down  to  Memphis. 
However,  they  may  come  back  yet.  I  gave  them  permis- 
sion to  go  out  and  look  at  the  town.  Their  time  was  up 
ten  minutes  ago. 

"  These  white  fellows  have  given  me  a  world  of  trouble. 
Although  I  have  them  in  the  cabin,  nothing  is  good  enough 
for  them.  Won't  I  make  them  work  to  pay  for  it  when  I 
get  them  on  the  plantation  ! — always,  of  course,  if  there  is 
any  work  in  them.  The  fact  is,  I  am  a  little  shaky  over 
our  selection  of  white  '■  farmers.'  I  have  been  sick,  but  am 
better  now.     Mules  doing  well. 

"  Yours, 

"  Johnson. 

"  P.  S. — Two  of  the  white  men  just  reported,  both  tipsy. 


OUR   VOYAGE   DOWN    THE    MISSISSIPPI    RIVER.  85 

This  leaves  me  seven  short.     Shall  have  Billy  stand  guard 
at  every  landing,  so  as  to  lose  no  more.  J." 

"Billy  "  was  Dobson's  hostler  in  the  army,  and  was  go- 
ing down  to  take  charge  of  our  mules. 

I  could  see,  from  my  steamboat  experience,  that  travel 
on  the  Mississii)pi  river  has  two  phases,  viz.,  first,  that 
which  belongs  to  the  ladies'  cabin,  and,  second,  that 
which  belongs  to  the  gentlemen's  cabin. 

The  line  of  distinction  between  the  two  is  marked.  My 
first  experience  was,  as  I  have  related,  in  the  gentlemen's 
cabin,  where  liquors  of  all  kinds,  mixed  in  every  conceiv- 
able way,  abound,  with  card-playing,  all  imaginable  games, 
but  chiefly  poker,  as  the  pastime,  money  passing  freely 
in  these  several  games.  There  is  to  be  seen  a  great 
display  of  cleanly  shaved  faces,  and  profusely  greased 
hair,  and  highly  polished  boots,  on  the  part  of  each  new 
passenger,  as  the  second  operation  after  getting  on  the 
boat — the  first  operation  being  generally  a  drink  at 
the  bar.  This,  as  I  had  seen,  was  the  general  make-up 
of  the  gentlemen's  cabin.  Two-thirds  of  the  way  up — 
that  is,  backward — in  the  steamboat  cabin,  was  a  line 
beyond  which  the  men-passengers,  unaccompanied  by 
ladies,  were  not  allowed  to  go ;  at  the  same  time,  how- 
ever, it  was  considered  quite  the  thing  for  lady-passengers, 
accompanied  by  gentlemen  or  not,  to  visit  any  part  of  the 
boat,  especially  the  forecastle  and  pilot-house,  to  drink  in 
breaths  of  fresh  air,  and  get  a  better  view  of  the  passing 
scenery  of  the  country.  AYhen  music  was  struck  up  for 
dancing  in  the  evening  the  men-passengers  crowded  up  to 
the  line  just  mentioned,  and  quietly  watched  the  scene. 
Only  occasionally  the  captain  of  the  boat  invited  a  male 
passenger  to  cross  over  the  line  and  participate  in  the 
dance.  There  were  not,  indeed,  any  published  rules  re- 
garding this  dividing  line,  nor  were  the  officers  in  the  habit 
of  calling  attention  to  it  directly — its  observance  seemed 


86  A    YEAR    OF    WRECK. 

to  be  the  result  of  custom.  The  second  phase  of  steam- 
boat life,  that  which  we  were  now  enjoying  in  the  ladies' 
cabin,  with  piano-music,  songs  by  lady  passengers,  card- 
playing,  the  negro-band  in  the  evening,  with  dancing,  was 
in  every  way  charming,  and  as  often  as  I  looked  down 
this  cabin,  and  saw  the  crowds  of  male  loungers  at  their 
various  occupations  and  amusements,  and  remembered  my 
own  experience,  I  could  not  do  otherwise  than  pity  them. 
We  were  at  dinner  when  our  destination  was  signaled. 
What  a  crowding  there  was  out  upon  the  guards  to  see  us 
off!  While  the  boat  was  rounding  to,  we  stood  in  the  midst 
of  our  circle  of  new-found  friends,  and  our  regrets  at  leav- 
ing them  were  almost  as  keen  as  those  we  had  recently 
experienced  when  we  had  left  behind  us  beloved  relatives 
and  friendships  of  many  years'  growth. 

Our  baggage  goes  off,  and  with  it  a  couple  of  bundles 
which  we  do  not  recognize  as  ours.  The  Captain  whispers 
to  Mrs.  Harding,  as  if  he  would  not  let  his  right  hand 
know,  etc.: 

"  A  few  beefsteaks,  and  a  couple  of  loaves  of  bread  for 
you." 

Thoughtful  man  !  If  he  could  have  seen  how  poor,  sick 
Adjutant  Johnson  enjoyed  that  fresh  bread  and  the  tender, 
juicy  beefsteak  that  evening  for  his  supper,  the  first  he  had 
tasted  since  leaving  the  Mayflower,  he  would  have  been 
more  than  repaid  ! 

At  last  we  are  on  the  bank,  and  many  handkerchiefs  are 
waving  adieus  from  the  steamboat.  There  the  little  Jor- 
dans  are  throwing  their  farewell  kisses  to  our  two  boys, 
one  of  whom  stands  holding  our  little  shepherd  pujDpy,  all 
dripping  from  his  first  Mississippi  bath,  which  he  has  just 
received  from  falling  off  the  stage-plank — clumsy  fellow — 
while  attempting  to  make  the  shore,  and  from  which  he 
has  been  rescued  by  one  of  the  deck-hands.  There  stands 
my  wife,  holding  a  little  French  clock,  with  its  bronze, 
figure  of  "  Euth  clasping   her  gleanings."     There  stands 


OUR   VOYAGE   DOWN    THE   MISSISSIPPI    RIVER.  87 

our  year-and-a-hiilf  old  buby-boy,  holding  fast  to  his  little 
rocking-chair.  There  I  myself  stand  with  my  hands  full 
of  satchels  and  a  bundle  under  each  arm  ;  and  so,  while 
the  boat  bears  our  friends  away,  there  being  no  conveyance 
to  be  had  at  the  landing  for  either  love  or  money,  and 
T^^ler's  wharf-boat,  with  its  squad  of  loungers,  being  any 
thing  but  an  attractive  place  for  a  family,  we  start  off,  on 
foot,  for  our  half-mile  journey  to  our  new  home  beyond  the 
freshly  made  levee. 

The  spring  rains  have  set  in,  and  such  mud  as  only  this 
swamp-country  can  produce  is  the  consequence.  As  wo 
flounder  along  in  it,  I  point  out  the  big  store  with  its 
ghastly  gun-shot  wound,  and  then  the  neglected  grave-yard 
where  the  swine  are  still  at  work. 

Still  we  flounder  through  the  mud,  but  soon  our  little 
toddler  gives  out.  I  stoop  down  and  let  him  fasten  himself 
to  my  back,  with  one  chubby  arm  about  my  neck,  holding 
fast  to  his  chair  with  the  other.  Then  the  clock  gets  very 
heavy  in  my  wife's  arms.  It  is  all  she  can  do  to  pull  out 
her  little  feet  at  each  step  as  the  black,  putty-like  mud 
sucks  them  in.  So,  notwithstanding  the  bundles  under  my 
arms,  the  satchels  in  my  hands,  and  the  baby  on  my  back, 
1  manage  to  make  a  shelf  of  my  breast,  with  satchels  and 
bundles,  on  which,  very  reluctantly,  seeing  that  I  am 
already  weighted  down,  she  deposits  the  clock.  I  laugh- 
ingly ask  her  if  she  does  n't  think  I  make  a  lively  mantle- 
piece,  and  then  we  all  trudge  on.  Great  drops  of  sweat 
stand  on  my  face.  Mrs.  Harding  wipes  them  away  with 
her  handkerchief,  which  shows  a  trembling  hand.  She  is 
evidently  very  weak,  but  tells  me  not  to  mind  her,  she  is 
all  right,  and,  as  if  to  convince  me,  insists  on  resuming  her 
burden  ;  but  no,  I  say,  it  is  no  load  at  all,  and  call  it  jolly 
fun.  Our  boy  trudges  along  behind,  with  Mike  in  his 
arms,  the  shaggy  fellow  still  moist  from  his  bath.  People 
tumble  out  from  the  whisky-shops  and  gape  at  us  as  if  we 
were  natural  curiosities.     Either  dazed  by  their  experience 


88  A   YEAR   OP   WRECK. 

in  these  shops,  or  by  our  general  make-up,  they  all  stand 
and  stare,  no  one  offering  to  lend  us  a  helping  hand. 

Finally  we  come  to  the  new  levee,  and  there  is  our  house 
beyond.  But  the  first  step  in  the  freshly  thrown-up  earth 
Avarns  us  not  to  attempt  to  cross  it.  We  look  on  either 
side  of  it  for  a  road-way,  and  see  nothing  but  water  on  the 
surface,  with  doubtless  a  worse  mire  underneath. 

There  is  the  piece  of  a  cast-away  wheeling-plank  near, 
and  we  all  sink  down  on  it  well-nigh  exhausted.  Then  I 
mentally  hold  a  council  of  war.  There  are  other  planks 
about,  and,  relieved  of  my  load,  after  a  moment's  rest  1 
proceed  to  make  a  plank-way  along  the  new  levee  with 
these.  At  the  foot  of  the  levee  is  a  cast-away  wheel-bar- 
row. I  get  it  up  on  our  road-way.  Then  I  lift  my  wife 
up  and  deposit  her  in  it,  and  wheel  her  across,  she  declar- 
ing it  to  be  the  most  charming  ride  of  her  life,  and  wishing 
our  friends  at  home  could  only  see  us  now.  "  Would  n't 
they  laugh?"  Then  we  wheel  over  the  boys  and  the  dog, 
and  finally  the  baggage — and  this  is  a  faithful  account  of 
the  wav  we  reached  our  new  home  from  the  landing. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

WE   ARRIVE  AT  OUR  NEW  HOME— FIRST   NIGHT's  EXPERIENCE. 

The  house  was  of  the  architecture  peculiar  to  the  South 
— one-story,  the  roof  high  in  the  center  and  descending  on 
all  four  sides,  forming  a  cover  for  the  immense  gallery,  or 
porch.  It  was  double,  with  a  large  hall  running  through 
the  center,  and  double -parlors  on  each  side.  Once,  evi- 
dently, it  had  been  a  home  of  some  pretentions — the  finish 
of  the  wood-work,  what  was  left  of  the  mantle-pieces,  with 


ME  ARRIVE  AT  OUR  NEW  HOME,  ETC.         89 

many  other  marks  about  the  premises  indicated  this.  The 
yard,  with  its  shrubbery,  its  beautiful  box-alder  trees,  and 
here  and  there  a  broken  piece  of  china,  or  mirror,  bore 
testimony  to  tlie  fact  that  people  had  once  lived  here  who 
knew  how  to  live.  But  what  a  wreck  it  presented  now ! — 
great  doors,  split  from  top  to  bottom  as  with  an  ax ; 
scarcely  an  unbroken  piece  of  glass  remaining  in  the  win- 
dows ;  not  a  door  with  an  effective  lock  on  it;  all  the 
liearths  torn  out,  leaving  great  gaping  holes,  large  enough 
to  admit  any  one  who  might  care  to  disturb  our  night's 
sleep ! 

Upon  entering  we  discovered  a  black  girl,  scouring  the 
paint.     She  scanned  us  from  head  to  foot  and  then  asked  : 

"  Is  you  de  new  folks?  " 

"  Yes." 

'•  Lor',  I's  see'd  many  a  Yankee  so'g'er — hab  cooked  for 
'em,  but  I  nebber  see'd  a  Yankee  'oman  afore,  an'  dey  tolc 
me  many  a  time  Yankee  'omen  had  ho'ns," — then,  as  if 
thinking  aloud,  "She  looks  "zackly  like  any  of  'em,  only 
more  delicate  like." 

On  inquiring  we  found  this  to  be  the  woman  Adjutant 
Johnson  had  procured  to  do  the  work  about  the  house. 
She  told  us  her  name  was  Jane. 

Jane  proved  a  character,  and  her  quaint  stories  of  plan- 
tation life,  incidents  of  the  war,  etc.,  furnished  us  many  an 
evening's  entertainment. 

Our  first  night's  sojourn  in  our  new  home,  thus  open, 
many  of  the  doors  entirely  off  their  hinges,  admitting  the 
straggling,  half-starved  dogs  of  the  neighborhood,  in  search 
of  some  thing  to  eat  (even  in  the  best  room  it  was  neces- 
sary to  hang  blankets,  where  a  door  or  window  once  was: 
our  own  bed  and  our  children's  crib  put  up  temporarily  in 
this  room,  and  a  few  scattered  pieces  of  furniture,  which  had 
preceded  us,  giying  a  familiar  air  to  the  place,  making  us 
feel  that  it  was  home,  or  that  we  must  think  so,  at  leastj — 


90  A    YEAR    OF   WRECK. 

that  first  Bigbt,  I  say,  is  one  that  Avill  be  remembered  by  us 
always. 

Being  very  tired  from  our  tramp  to  the  house  from  the 
landing,  having  no  thoughts  but  those  most  pleasing  from 
our  fresh  steamboat  experience  of  Southern  people,  know- 
ing nothing,  dreaming  nothing  of  the  bitterness  which  was 
already  felt  toward  us  by  our  neighbors — after  some  hours 
chat  with  Adjutant  Johnson  (who,  hearing  of  our  arrival, 
had  come  from  the  Hebron  plantation  to  Avelcome  us) 
— we  retired  and  fell  into  a  profound  sleep. 

Sounds  heard  around  the  house  as  of  jDcrsons  walking 
and  talking  in  undertones,  the  firing  of  guns,  and  an  occa- 
sional human  howl,  wakened  and  excited  me.  I  do  not 
think  I  had  the  feeling  of  fear,  but  certainly  I  grew  nerv- 
ous and  wondered  at  these  strange  noises.  I^or  could  I 
again  sleep,  so,  getting  up,  I  went  out  upon  the  gallery  and 
there  met  Adjutant  Johnson,  also  nervous  and  restless. 
He  told  me  that  there  was  an  average  of  one  or  two  mur- 
ders committed  in  the  village  every  week. 

"Didj^ou  hear  those  guns?  Perhaps  they  each  sent  a 
soul  to  its  long  home." 

There  was  no  more  going  to  sleep  that  night,  but  a  long 
visit  with  Johnson  instead,  and  very  early  in  the  morning 
I  made  m}"  first  purchase  in  the  village,  viz.:  a  pound  of 
nails  and  a  hatchet,  with  which,  and  the  stray  planks  scat- 
tered about,  I  barricaded  windows  and  doors,  so  that  on 
our  second  night  there  were  two  rooms  in  the  house  which 
could  not  have  been  readily  entered. 

I  asked  the  merchant  of  whom  I  bought  the  hatchet  and 
nails  : 

"  AYhat  was  the  disturbance  last  night  ?  " 

"  One  of  the  Northern  men  who  has  recently  settled  here 
brought  in  some  negro  labor  from  Vicksburg  on  a  night 
boat,  and  the  mischievous  boys  in  town  got  among  them 
and  stampeded  them." 


WE    ARRIVE    AT    OUR    NEW    HOME,    ETC.  91 

"  But  there  were  gun-shots.    What  did  the  firing  mean  ?  " 

"  One  negro  was  shot  in  the  affair,  I  believe." 

"  Have  they  been  arrested  ?  " 

"  Who?  the  negroes?" 

"No,  the  parties  who  perpetrated  the  outrage." 

'•  Oh,  no  !  these  things  are  very  common  here  ;  boys  will 
be  boj'S.  For  myself,  I  regret  it  very  much — don't  con- 
sider it  treating  the  new-comers  just  right ;  but  there  seems 
to  be  no  remedy  for  it." 

"  But  will  there  be  no  effort  to  arrest  the  murderer  of 
the  negro?  " 

"  Well,  I  reckon  not.  The  county-seat  is  eighteen  miles 
back  from  the  river.  There  are  no  officers  of  the  law  here 
at  all.  Even  if  any  one  was  disj^osed  to  bother  himself 
about  having  the  parties  arrested,  the  boys  would  worry 
him  so,  he  would  be  only  too  glad  to  give  it  up." 

The  merchant  said  "  worry  "  with  an  emphasis  and  an  ex- 
pression, as  if  it  meant  volumes,  and  then  his  speech  was 
cautious,  and  delivered  in  an  undertone.  Evidently  "  the 
boys  "  were  a  power,  which  the  merchant  did  not  care  to 
invoke  against  himself,  and  he  seemed  fearful  of  being 
overheard  by  some  one. 

"This,  then,  it  seems,  is  not  the  unfrequent  mode  of 
welcoming  immigration,  and  if  any  effort  should  be  made 
to  put  a  stop  to  it,  the  boys  would  '  worry  '  the  party  who 
attempted  it,"  I  said. 

"  Yes,  that  is  true." 

"What  a  fearful  condition  of  things  this  discloses!"  I 
exclaimed.  "  That  a  sentiment  like  this  exists  is  bad 
enough,  but  that  the  good  element  of  society  do  not  raise 
a  voice  against  it,  as  would  seem  from  what  you  say,  is  ap- 
palling. No  opposition  is  its  virtual  indorsement,  and 
being  thus  indorsed,  how  it  will  grow,  and  what  a  blight 
it  will  put  on  the  community!  And  then  I  told  the  mer- 
chant how  tenderly  emigration  was  cared  for  in  the  East 
and  West;   how  it  was  shielded  by  the  powerful  arm  of 


92  A    YEAR    OF    WRECK. 

the  law,  so  that  no  harm  could  corae  to  it ;  how  that  neither 
in  purse  nor  person,  wherever  this  life-giving  stream  flowed, 
was  it  allowed  to  suffer  the  loss  of  a  penny  or  a  single  hair. 
That  is  just  what  is  wanted  here,"  I  continued,  ''and  yet, 
by  your  own  story,  there  is  the  very  opposite  of  it.  If 
this  is  the  custom  in  sections  of  country  where  labor  is 
comparatively  abundant,  how  much  more  necessary  is  it 
here,  where  really  no  labor  system  exists,  and  where  there 
is  nothing  but  a  crude  mass  of  a  recently  enfranchised  race 
which  has  to  be  molded,  as  it  were ;  and  upon  their  treat- 
ment much  will  depend,  as  to  whether  they  will  become 
instruments  of  good  or  evil.  Being  free,  there  is  nothing 
to  compel  them  to  remain  in  any  particular  section  of  the 
country,  and  they  will  naturally  seek  locations  where  they 
will  be  justly  treated  ;  so  that,  aside  from  the  right  of  the 
thing,  and  viewed  simply  in  the  light  of  policy,  violence  to- 
ward them  is  bad,  because  it  will  not  only  prevent  others  from 
coming,  but  will  drive  those  already  here  away.  If  they 
should  prove  to  be  fair  laborers,  they  will  now  be  valuable 
to  the  whole  community,  instead  of,  as  formerly,  when  they 
were  slaves,  only  enriching  the  particular  individual  whose 
property  they  were.  If  an  emigrant  from  a  foreign  shore 
adds  a  thousand  dollars  to  the  wealth  of  the  country,  as  is  the 
estimate,  he  adds  it  to  theparticular  locality  where  he  settles. 
The  abolition  of  slavery  was,  so  to  speak,  so  much  black 
immigration,  and  the  black  labor  already  here,  as  well  as 
that  which  will  yet  come,  is  worth,  to  the  community,  one 
thousand  dollars  a  head,  so  that  the  affair  of  last  night,  and 
which  you  say  is  very  common  here,  has  not  only  de- 
stroyed a  human  soul,  but  it  has  robbed  the  community  of 
that  sum.  It  has  done  vastly  more  than  this  ;  sooner  or 
later  this  state  of  affairs  will  be  known  abroad,  which  will 
put  an  end  to  any  further  capital  coming  here,  and  even 
those  already  here,  the  old  settlers  as  well  as  the  new- 
comers, will  find  it  next  to  impossible  to  get  labor  from 


WE  ARRIVE  AT  OUR  NEW  HOME,  ETC.         93 

abroad.  Are  the  black  peo}ile  so  abundant  liere  that  im- 
migration can  be  thus  treated  ?  "  I  asked. 

"  Oh,  no,  hibor  is  very  scarce  ;  there  is  n't  half  enough 
here." 

"  If  this  inhuman  treatment  is  not  i:)ut  a  stop  to  at  once," 
I  exclaimed,  "  it  will  take  chains  to  bring  more  labor  here, 
and  it  would  be  better  for  your  people  to  put  sign-boards 
along  your  river-front,  on  which  should  be  inscribed,  in 
large  letters,  which  can  be  plainly  seen  from  the  decks  of 
the  passing  steamboats, '  No  caj^ital  or  immigration  wanted 
here.'  That's  what  this  sort  of  treatment  means,  and  it 
is  only  a  fair  and  honorable  course,  if  it  can  not  be  stopped 
at  once,  to  publish  it,  so  that  if  there  are  settlers  here  in 
the  future,  they  can  't  say  they  came  here  without  a  warn- 
ing. 

"  I  speak  with  much  feeling,"  I  said  ;  "  I  have  located 
here,  have  invested  money  here,  and  expect  to  make  this 
my  home.  I  am  astounded  to  find  the  condition  of  things 
which  your  statement  discloses,  and  while  it  is  not  my 
purpose  to  take  any  part  in  public  affairs,  whenever  great 
wrongs  like  this  come  to  my  notice,  I  must  speak  plainly 
my  sentiments  to  individuals.  But  you  are  an  old  settler, 
and  will  you  not  take  hold  of  this,  will  you  not  talk  to  other 
good  citizens?  Certainly,  if  the  good  element  will  put  its 
heads  together,  this  evil  can  be  arrested  before  it  has  worked 
incalculable  harm  to  the  community." 

"  Well,  it  is  wrong,  but  I  do  n't  believe  the  'boys  '  will 
listen  to  any  body.  When  they  get  on  the  rampage  they 
are  so  mischievous." 

There  was  nothing  in  the  merchant's  manner  to  give  me 
much  hope  that  m}^  words  would  be  of  avail.  In  fact,  he 
cautioned  me  in  an  undertone,  and  with  evident  fear  in  his 
eye,  against  "pitching  into  the  boys  too  lively,"  as  it 
would  be  just  like  the  rascals  to  get  after  me  ;  but  I,  never- 
theless, resolved  to  speak  plainly  on  the  subject  as  often 
as  the  opportunity  presented  itself,  else  I  myself  would  be- 


94  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

^ome  a  party  to  what  was  thrilling  my  soul  with  horror, 
and  to  what  I  could  plainly  see  would  administer  a  destruc- 
tive blow  to  the  county. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

WE   SUFFER   FROM    BAD   ADVICE    AND   INEFFICIENT   LABOR. 

"  You  made  a  great  mistake,"  said  Adjutant  Johnson,  in 
havino;  our  freio^ht  landed  at  the  wharf-boat.  It  should 
have  been  left  at  our  own  landing." 

*' Tyler  advised  it,"  I  replied.  "I  didn't  suppose  he 
would  mislead  us." 

•'  It  certainly  was  a  mistake.  I  could  have  handled  and 
stored  away  our  entire  outfit  from  our  own  landing  in  a 
single  day,  and  here  I  have  been  hauling  with  both  teams 
since  our  arrival,  now  twelve  days,  and  the  freight  is  n't 
over  one-quarter  up. 

"It  is  breaking  down  our  team  and  discouraging  the 
men,  as  they  are  almost  certain  to  bog  down  crossing  the 
slough  in  the  rear  of  the  new  levee  you  had  so  much 
trouble  in  getting  over  with  your  family  last  evening, 
and  they  are  frequently  out  until  late  in  the  night  in  con- 
sequence of  these  detentions.  Not  only  that,  but  our  hay 
and  corn  is  being  much  damaged  by  having  to  unload  and 
load  it  up  again  in  the  slough. 

"  Our  freight  bill  is  twelve  hundred  and  fifty  dollars,  and 
Tyler  has  added  three  hundred  and  twelve  dollars  and  a 
half  landing  charges.  Twenty-five  per  cent,  added  to  the 
freight  bill  is  his  profit." 

"  This  is  fearful.  We  will  have  to  look  out  how  we  take 
advice  in  the  future." 


BAD    ADVICE    AND    INEFFICIENT   LABOR.  95 

**  It  is  quite  evident  that  we  have  not  only  been  seriously 
misled,  but  we  have  been  badly  fleeced,"  said  Adjutant 
Johnson. 

Before  we  got  this  lot  of  freight  up,  I  felt  strongly 
inclined  to  sue  somebody  for  damages  ;  but  ere  that  the 
sad  conviction  was  forcing  itself  upon  me  that  there  were 
no  courts  open  for  our  class  ;  that  a  new-comer  had  no 
rights  which  any  one  respected  ;  that  we  were  simply  re- 
garded as  so  many  fat  geese  tied  in  the  market,  and  every 
passing  Southerner  was  at  liberty  to  pluck  a  feather  from  us. 
Day  after  day  we  tugged  through  the  mire  to  haul  this 
lot  of  freight  away;  night  after  night  we  worked  to  get 
our  teams  out  of  the  bogs  of  the  slough  ;  great  was  the 
strain  upon  the  mules  and  the  men — precious  time  lost, 
too,  because  it  was  towards  the  latter  end  of  the  plow- 
ing season,  and  yet  we  had  not  struck  a  furrow. 

Not  a  day  less  than  a  month  was  thus  consumed  with 
two  four-mule  teams  and  two  men  to  each  wagon  in  doino- 
what,  if  we  had  been  correctly  advised,  would  have  taken 
but  a  single  day  ! 

I  calculate  that  this  leaf  in  our  experience  cost  us,  in  di 
rect  money,  not  less  than  fifteen  hundred  dollars,  to  say 
nothing  of  the  loss  of  time  from  the  legitimate  duties  of 
farming,  the  strain  on  our  mules,  and  its  demoralizing  in- 
fluence on  the  men,  which  were  indirect  losses,  impossible 
to  correctly  estimate— all  to  put  the  paltry  sum  of  three 
hundred  and  twelve  dollars  and  a  half  into  the  pocket  of 
the  wharf-boat  owner  ! 

Adjutant  Johnson  said,  with  a  howl  : 
'•  This  is  encouraging  immigration  with  a  vengeance  !" 
1  asked  Tyler  where  we  had  best  have  our  freight  landed, 
and  received  his  reply,  "  On  the  wharf-boat,  by  all  means," 
in  the  presence  and  hearing  of  a  number  of  the  wharf-boat 
loungers,  all  of  whom  must  have  known  he  was  misdirect- 
ing us,  and  yet  not  one  of  them  warned  us  of  the  fearful 
trap.     It   could    not   be   said,  then,    that   the  wharf-boat 


96  A    YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

owner  was  alone  responsible  for  this  costly  affair.  The  fact 
is,  he  was  less  so  than  the  bystanders,  because  my  question 
had  excited  his  cupidity.  If  the  freight  could  be  landed 
with  him,  there  w^as  the  handsome  profit ;  but  with  the 
bystanders  there  was  no  such  incentive. 

Nor  could  it  be  said,  "This  was  not  their  business,  but 
simply  a  matter  between  Tj'ler  and  myself,"  for  the  reason 
that  any  thing  which  would  have  a  tendency  to  influence 
the  tide  of  immigration,  then  flowing  into  the  country,  un- 
favorably, was  the  business  of  every  citizen  of  the  count}-. 
If  they  saw  as  much  as  a  straw  thrown  in  its  way,  it  was 
their  duty  to  see  it  promptly  removed. 

Stranger  that  I  was,  I  had  asked  to  be  guided  aright, 
and  the  very  best  evidence  that  I  had  confidence,  and  was 
willing  to  trust  the  people,  was  to  be  found  in  the  fact  that 
I  had  so  asked,  and  the  bystanders,  who  had  allowed  us  to 
be  so  misguided,  were  just  as  guilty  as  would  be  those  who 
would  allow  a  ticket  agent  in  JS'ew  York  to  sell  an  emi- 
grant a  passage  to  Philadelphia,  by  way  of  San  Francisco, 
without  warning  him  of  the  swindle. 

Neither  at  that  time,  when  a  word  of  warning  from  any 
one  of  the  bystanders,  dropped  in  my  ear,  if  he  bad  not 
cared  to  speak  openly,  would  have  saved  us  this  never-to- 
be-forgotten  experience,  nor  afterwards,  when  we  were 
toiling  day  after  day  and  night  after  night,  for  a  month,  to 
do  the  work  of  a  single  day,  was  there  a  word  of  sympathy 
expressed  for  us,  or  a  breath  of  condemnation  against  the 
author  of  the  affair,  even  though  many  of  the  citizens 
passed  the  slough,  and  saw  us  frequently  up  to  our  knees 
in  the  mud  and  water,  with  our  wagons  sunk  to  their 
hubs,  and  mules  and  drivers  floundering  about  in  the  mire, 
besmeared  with  it,  and  wet  from  head  to  foot. 

I  asked  Adjutant  Johnson  about  the  old  hands  we  had 
seen  on  the  Hebron  plantation — were  they  all  there  yet?" 

"Only  old  Cato  and  his  family  !" 

"  What  became  of  the  rest  ?" 


BAD   ADVICE   AND   INEFFICIENT   LABOR.  97 

*'  They  mostly  went  to  the  Hambleton  plantation,  I  un- 
derstand." 

From  Cato  I  learned  that  the  people  in  the  neighborhood 
had  told  them  they  would  have  to  vacate  the  quarters  to 
make  room  for  the  new  hands  we  would  bring  with  us,  so 
they  had  reluctantly  moved  away. 

"  Powerful  choice  hands  dey  was,  too,"  said  Cato.  "Dey 
hated  mightily  to  lebe  do  ole  place,  but  dey  done  gone  an' 
made  corntracs  for  de  year." 

AVell,  here  was  a  loss,  to  be  sure.  These  hands  were  to 
be  our  main  reliance,  our  wheel-horses,  so  to  speak.  Wo 
had  counted  on  keeping  them.  What  should  we  do? 
Could  we  call  them  back  ?  No,  they  had,  no  doubt,  as 
Cato  said,  made  contracts,  and  were  beyond  our  reach. 

The  planters  in  the  neighborhood  might  have  thought 
they  were  doing  us  a  service  by  telling  this  labor  to  "  va- 
cate," but  it  certainly  was  not  a  service  ;  on  the  contrary, 
I  felt  that  they  could  not  well  have  dealt  us  a  severer  blow. 

We  were  to  blame,  perhaps,  ourselves,  in  not  seeing  the 
laborers  immediately  after  our  purchase,  and  making  an 
engagement  with  them  for  the  year  ;  but  we  never  dreamed 
for  a  moment  that  any  one  would  interfere  with  them. 
Having  bought  the  place,  of  course  we  would  want  labor 
for  it.  What  was  really  there  was  so  much  start,  and  what 
more  natural  than  to  suppose  we  would  want  to  retain  it  ? 

A  singular  community  this  was,  that  would  not  open  its 
mouth  to  save  us  from  landing  our  freight  two  miles  away, 
and  which  yet  became  oflScious  in  our  absence  to  clear  our 
cabins  of  the  labor  in  them  ! 

We  had  told  no  one  we  were  going  to  bring  labor  with 
us.  In  fact,  our  programme  in  this  regard,  had  not  been 
mentioned  on  the  wharf-boat  at  all,  but  had  been  decided 
on  after  leaving  there,  so  that  for  aught  the  people  knew, 
we  would  look  for  all  our  labor  in  the  immediate  vicinity, 


98  A   YEAR   OP   WRECK. 

and  yet  it  bad  been  given  out  as  coming  from  us  tbat  we 
sbould  want  our  cabins — bence  tbe  exodus. 

Of  course  we  bad  not  tbe  least  claim  in  tbe  world  on 
tbese  people.  Tbey  were  free  and  at  liberty  to  make  tbeir 
contracts  wben  and  wbere  tbey  cbose,  but  we  bad  found 
tbem  on  tbe  place,  and  tbe  fact  of  tbeir  being  tbere.  old 
bands  as  tbey  were,  sbowed  an  attacbment  to  it  on  tbeir 
part,  and  notbing  could  be  more  natural,  tberefore,  tban 
for  us  to  feel  tbat  tbey  would  want  to  stay.  And  it  seems 
tbey  did  want  to  stay,  tbat  tbey  bad  left  reluctantly,  and 
but  for  tbe  statements  of  our  meddlesome  neigbbors,  tbey 
would  still  be  on  tbe  place  and  at  our  service. 

It  was  a  cruel  disaj^pointment  to  feel  tbat  we  bad  lost 
tbem,  more  so  because  Jobnson  told  us  be  was  dubious 
about  tbe  labor  be  bad  brougbt  down. 

"  Tbe  wbites  are  a  turbulent  set,  and  tbe  fact  is,"  be  said, 
"  I  am  satisfied  tbere  is  n't  a  farmer  among  tbem  ;  tbrce  of 
tbem  are  painters,  two  printers,  one  professional  bill-poster, 
two  tailors,  and  two  sboemakers,  and  all  a  set  of  loafers. 
Tbe  overseer,  Mr.  Hunter,  put  tbem  to  cbopping  up  tbe 
dead  trees  wbicb  bad  fallen  in  tbe  fields,  and  tbe  first  day 
be  found  tbem  bugging  tbe  side  of  a  log,  witb  a  number  of 
greasy  packs  of  cards,  at  play.  Tbey  declared  tbat  wood- 
cbopping  was  barder  work  tban  tbey  cared  to  engage  in, 
told  tbe  overseer  to  give  tbe  negroes  tbat  kind  of  work, 
and  let  tbem  bave  something  easier;  so  be  put  tbem  to 
breaking  down  tbe  tall  weeds  witb  clubs,  and  raking  tbem 
up  in  beaps  and  burning  tbem,  tbus  getting  tbe  land  ready 
for  the  plows.  But  tbey  are  tbe  veriest  eye-servants,  and 
wbat  little  work  tbey  do  is  sbabby.  It  is  impossible  to, 
please  tbem  witb  food,  and  twice  tbey  bave  rebelled  at  tbe 
table,  and  dashed  wbat  was  set  before  tbem  on  tbe  ground. 
Tbey  make  tbe  nigbt  bideous  witb  tbeir  noises,  in  tbe  bar- 
racks wbicb  I  've  bad  arranged  for  tbem,  and  in  tbe  morn- 
ing it  is  impossible  to  puncb  tbem  out  before  tbe  sun  is 
an  bour  bigb. 


BAD    ADVICE    AND   INEFFICIENT    LABOR.  99 

"  Their  influence  on  the  blacks  is  demoralizing,  as  the 
latter  take  their  labor  for  the  standard,  and  when  I  rebuke 
them  the}'  retort  that  they  are  doing  more  than  the  white 
folks."  Such  was  a  brief  outline  of  the  situation,  as  John- 
son gave  it. 

With  the  negroes  under  this  influence  the  thawing-out 
process  was  sending  to  the  surface  all  that  was  objectiona- 
ble in  their  characters,  and  in  their  fondness  for  imitation 
they  seemed  bent  in  outdoing  the  white  squad  in  examples 
of  laziness  and  acts  of  lawlessness.  Only  three  weeks  ago 
they  were  hungr}^  enough  to  gnaw  a  bone,  tmd  now,  sim- 
ply because  "de  white  folks  dashed  out  de  grub,"  forsooth 
out  theirs  went. 

It  soon  became  evident  to  us  that  the  overseer  was  a  fail- 
ure. Either  he  was  naturally  lazy,  or  he  caught  the  con- 
tagion from  his  lazy  surroundings,  and  Adjutant  Johnson's 
health  fluctuated,  so  that  he  was  forced  to  keep  his  room 
most  of  the  time.  Thus,  with  an  incompetent  overseer  and 
an  invalid  assistant,  my  hands  were  full. 

I  immediately  wrote  to  Dobson,  stating  the  situation 
minutely,  and  telling  him  to  bring  down  twenty-five  black 
laborers,  giving  him  distinctly  the  class  of  hands  desired, 
namely,  '•  contraband,"  and  all  farmers,  and  urging  him  to 
put  them  to  the  severest  test  on  this  point,  and  to  be  in  a 
hurry.  It  would  take  at  least  twenty  days  for  Dobson  to 
get  here  with  this  relief,  even  with  the  greatest  expedition, 
and  my  letter  was  so  pressing  I  hardly  thought  he  would 
fail  to  make  sj^eed,  even  though  it  was  his  wont  never  to 
be  in  a  hurry. 

I  did  not  doubt  Dobson's  ability  to  get  the  hands,  as  wo 
had  so  recently  dealt  in  the  same  market,  and  found  it  to  be 
overstocked  ;  but  thinking  we  might  i^rocure  some  relief 
sooner,  I  dispatched  Johnson  to  Yicksburg,  to  see  what 
could  be  done  there  in  the  way  of  procuring  help. 

It  made  ray  heart  bleed  to  see  the  poor  sick  boy  start  off 
on  this  journey.     Tie  was  now  but  a  skeleton  in  flesh,  and 


100  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

■what  be  wanted  was  the  tenderest  nursing  ;  that,  in  this 
balmy  Southern  atmosj^here,  would  pull  him  through,  if 
any  thing  could,  but  here  was  our  enterprise  in  a  fair  way 
to  be  swamped  for  want  of  labor.  With  our  worthless  over- 
seer, it  was  impossible  for  me  to  get  away,  and  there  was  no 
alternative  but  for  Johnson  to  go. 

His  enfeebled  condition  seemed  but  to  add  fuel  to  his 
ardor  to  do  every  thing  which  could  be  done  in  human 
power  to  make  our  scheme  a  winning  one.  Eight  nobly 
bad  he  seconded  my  every  effort.  His  heart  and  soul  were 
in  the  enterprise,  and  a  hint  on  my  part  was  all  he  needed 
to  start  him  off  with  as  much  speed  and  as  light  a  mood  as 
he  could  possibly  have  shown  if  he  had  been  a  strong, 
healthy  man. 

It  was  plain  our  overseer  was  doing  us  no  good.  He  was 
one  of  those  frauds  in  the  human  form,  to  be  found  every- 
where, who  was  always  going  to  begin — one  of  your  to- 
morrow brothers.  Day  after  day  he  would  promise  me 
that  the  next  should  see  our  plows  started,  until  my  pa- 
tience became  exhausted.  It  was  rapidly  ai)proaching 
March,  and  not  a  furrow  had  been  turned.  Only  about 
forty  days  remained  to  plow  nine  hundred  acres.  Our 
situation  was  alarming. 


CHAPTEK  XXIV. 


WE   COMMENCE   PLOWING. 


After  a  restless  night  in  thinking  over  our  situation,  I 
rode  up  to  the  plantation  early  in  the  morning  and  de- 
manded of  the  overseer  that  he  at  once  start  the  plows, 
but  it  was   three  in  the  afternoon   before  the  thing  was 


WE   COMMENCE   PLOWING.  101 

finally  accomplished  ;  and  even  then  it  would  not  have  been 
done  but  for  "Billy,"  who,  with  the  exception  of  old  Clara, 
the  cook  Johnson  engaged  after  his  arrival  here,  was 
really  the  only  one  on  the  place  whose  heart  seemed  to  be 
at  all  in  the  work.  But  it  was  a  sickly  start  at  plowing. 
The  mules  were  in  high  metal  from  their  long  rest,  and 
there  was  but  a  single  man  in  our  black  squad  who  was  a 
cotton  hand,  and  but  two  who  were  farmers  at  all.  These 
two  moved  off  without  difiSculty  ;  but  the  rest !  Now  they 
had  the  plow  down,  now  the  plow  had  them  down,  their 
mules  plunged  off  on  all  sorts  of  tangents,  hame-strings 
flew  right  and  left,  three  orfour  jDlow-beams  snapped  square 
in  two,  in  what  seemed  to  be  the  frantic  effort  of  these  nov- 
ices to  get  down  into  China.  Soon  the  mules  became  fret- 
ted under  their  clumsy  handling ;  several  of  them  tore 
themselves  out  of  the  harness  and  scampered  off  until  they 
hid  themselves  in  the  tall  weeds;  others  frothed  at  the 
mouth,  and  under  every  piece  of  leather  showed  a  broad 
lather  of  sweat,  their  tails  hugged  their  bodies  so  close  that 
you  could  not  have  gotten  a  shaving  under  them,  and  their 
ears  lay  back  viciously  against  their  necks — now  they  were 
dragging  driver,  plowman,  and  plow  in  headlong  speed, 
and  now  they  refused  to  budge.  There  was  no  medium 
with  them,  it  was  either  the  speed  of  the  wind  or  a  sudden 
halt — this  just  as  the  plow  spun  on  the  surface  or  buried 
itself  to  the  hilt,  so  to  speak,  in  the  earth.  Finally, 
after  three  hours  of  this  frantic  tugging,  and  when  men 
and  mules  were  worn  down,  I  called  a  halt.  I  need 
hardly  say  it  was  a  sorry  spectacle.  With  the  exception 
of  the  furrows  plowed  by  the  two  farmers,  the  piece  of 
ground  looked  as  if  it  might  have  been  the  arena  of  a  bull- 
fight, or  the  rooting-place  of  a  drove  of  hogs.  Four  plows 
out  of  sixteen  were  carried  to  the  blacksmith  shop  for  re- 
pairs— one  of  them  was  so  wrenched  that  the  handles 
and  beam  were  in  a  straight  line  ;  the  half  of  a  side  of 
lace-leather   was    consumed   in    renewing    hame-strings ; 


102  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

there  were  three  sore-shoiildered  mules,  all  of  them  show- 
ing huge  welts  from  the  lashings  of  the  drivers  ;  three  of 
those  home-made  double-trees  were  snapped  in  two  ;  there 
were  four  disabled  devices  and  lap-rings  ;  and  a  wilted  ap- 
pearance generally  of  men  and  mules  was,  briefly  told,  the 
spectacle. 

But,  such  as  it  was,  it  was  the  commencement  of  the 
plowing  season,  and  that  piece  of  an  afternoon's  work  not 
only  toned  down  the  mules,  but  it  put  the  men  in  the  most 
docile  mood  possible.  There  was  no  murmuring  that  night 
over  the  "  grub,"  and  no  hideous  noises  in  either  quarters 
or  barracks.  Billy  told  me,  next  morning,  it  was  the 
quietest  night  he  had  experienced. 

Before  I  went  home,  I  discharged  the  overseer,  and  put 
Billy  in  immediate  command,  with  instructions  to  have  all 
the  damages  of  the  afternoon  repaired  that  night,  so  as  to 
be  ready  to  commence  plowing  in  earnest  bright  and  early 
in  the  morning. 

It  was  after  midnight  when  the  blacksmith  and  carpen- 
ter closed  their  shops,  having  gotten  the  damaged  plows, 
double-trees,  etc.,  in  trim  again.  All  the  livelong  evening 
the  fire  glowed  in  the  furnace,  the  hammer  sounded  its 
clear  notes  on  the  anvil,  great  volumes  of  sparks  rose  from 
the  chimney,  and,  keeping  the  blacksmith  company,  was 
the  sound  of  the  carpenter's  plane  and  hatchet. 

Aunt  Clara  told  me,  next  day  : 

"  Las'  night  'pear'd  like  ole  times  ;  dat  was  jis  de  way 
day  use  to  do  'fo'  de  wa'." 

I  determined  to  set  an  example  of  industry — hoping  thus 
to  infuse  a  little  life  into  our  excuse  for  labor — and  the  next 
morning  at  daylight  found  me  again  at  the  plantation,  my 
voice  sounding  through  the  quarters  for  all  hands  to  turn 
out.  To  my  pleasant  surprise  they  were  not  long  in  re- 
sponding to  my  call.  Evidently  their  effort  of  yesterday 
had  tamed  them  ;  then  the  discharge  of  the  overseer,  the 
busy  hum  of  industry  the  night  previous,  and  my  being  so 


WE    COMMENCE   PLOWING.  103 

promptly  on  the  ground  now,  told  them  that  I  meant  busi- 
ness, and,  if  they  wanted  to  please  me,  they  must  take  a 
livelier  pace  than  had  been  their  wont  under  the  easy-going 
Hunter. 

I  made  them  stand  before  me  in  military  style;  then  I 
took  down  their  names  and  told  them  Billy  would  call  the 
roll  at  sunrise,  and  those  who  were  not  on  hand  to  answer 
the  call  would  forfeit  half  a  day's  wages.  When  pay-day 
came,  which  would  be  now  shortly,  I  said,  they  would  ex- 
pect their  pay  promptly,  but  they  must,  in  the  mean- 
time, give  me  prompt,  willing,  and  faithful  service. 

While  I  was  j^et  at  my  lecture,  Clara's  breakfast-bell 
rang. 

The  whites  and  blacks  took  their  meals  in  separate  rooms^ 
and  I  joined  the  white  squad.  Clara  had  given  them  some 
biscuit,  boiled  potatoes,  fried  pork,  and  a  cup  of  coffee.  The 
blacks  had  corn-bread  instead  of  biscuit,  and  no  potatoes; 
otherwise  their  fare  was  the  same  as  the  whites.  I  never 
enjoyed  a  meal  more  in  my  life  than  I  did  this  early  morn- 
ing breakfast. 

I  went  to  the  field  myself  with  the  hands  on  this  day, 
and  for  weeks  thereafter  ;  now  taking  the  lead  with  the 
plow  gang,  now  assisting  in  logging,  and  now  knocking 
down  the  weeds  before  the  plows,  all  the  time  performing 
the  duties  and  drudgery  of  a  day -laborer — this  until  my 
hands  became  horny  and  my  face  bronzed  ;  and  when  I 
took  my  meals,  which  I  generally  did  with  the  hands,  how 
I  enjoyed  the  homely,  wholesome  food  ;  and  these  w^erethe 
days  when  I  proved  that  the  sleep  of  the  laboring-man  is 
sweet. 


104  A    YEAR   OF    WRECK. 


CHAPTEE  XXV. 


INCIDENTS. 


My  two-mile  ride,  morning  and  evening,  was  the  hardest 
thing  I  had  to  bear.  I  had  to  get  np  very  early,  in  order  to 
be  at  the  plantation  at  sunrise.  The  two  hours  of  sleep  be- 
fore the  break  of  day  are  always  the  most  refreshing.  La- 
boring-man that  I  now  was,  I  needed  this  very  much.  But, 
of  course,  to  be  on  time  at  the  plantation,  I  had  to  deprive 
myself  of  it.  I  took  many  a  little  nap,  however,  while 
riding  up  to  the  plantation.  It  is  something  wonderful 
how  much  sleep  one  can  actually  get  on  horse-back,  espec- 
ially if  he  can  give  his  horse  the  rein,  letting  him  travel 
over  some  frequented  route.  My  horse  had  the  route  by 
heart,  so  all  I  had  to  do  was  to  let  him  follow  his  own  di- 
rection, and  doze  away  until  he  brought  me  up  with  a 
round  turn  at  my  office  in  the  plantation  quarters. 

Whatever  might  have  been,  or  might  be  in  the  future, 
the  experience  of  others,  mine  told  me  that  I  ought  to  be 
on  the  ground  night  and  day.  We  must  get  to  living  on  the 
plantation  as  soon  as  possible.  True,  1  had  rendered  good 
service  many  a  night  in  being  so  near  the  new  levee,  when 
our  teams  were  wont  to  "  bog  down."  But  this  unfortunate 
and  expensive  experience  would  soon  be  over.  It  is  true, 
if  we  had  not  been  living  there  this  would  have  daily  called 
me  to  the  neighborhood,  so  that  as  the  thing  had  resulted, 
it  might  be  said  we  had  perched  on  the  bank  of  this  slough 
so  that  I  might  be  at  hand  to  assist  by  night  in  extricating 
our  teams  from  the  mire. 

As  for  the  neighborhood  itself,  it  had  its  chapter  of  inci- 
dents, for  both  my  wife  and  myself  I  will  here  gather  up 
some  of  these  from  our  correspondence  of  those  days.    The 


INCIDENTS.  105 

following  is  from  a  letter  written  by  Mrs.  Harding  : 
.  '-After  looking  around  among  our  j^ackages,  I  discovered 
many  articles  left  behind  that  we  needed  sadly",  and  many 
utterly  useless  and  ornamental  things,  which,  on  the  other 
hand,  were  much  in  our  way. .  You  remember  when  I  made 
up  our  little  parcel  of  ornaments,  I  thought  they  would  come 
in  good  part  to  adorn  our  new  home ;  but  any  thing  be- 
yond the  bare  necessities  is  sadly  out  of  keeping  here,  and 
I  wish  they  were  safely  back  in  their  old  resting-places, 
where  they  would  fill  your  eyes  with  pleasure,  instead  of 
calling  up  the  memories  of  past  days  with  us,  which  makes 
us  sad  in  the  thought  that  they  may  never  return. 

"Our     sick     friend  "—meaning    Adjutant     Johnson— 
"thought  if  I  would  make  him  a  cup  of  good  home  coffee, 
it  would  be  so  refreshing,  as  he  had  been  living  on  what- 
ever he  could  pick  up  since  his  arrival.     He  said  he  was 
actually  getting  homesick  over  the  thought.     Of  course,  as 
soon  as  the  desire  was  expressed,  I  made  haste  to  gratify  it, 
but  found,  upon  examination,  that  among  the  missing  house- 
hold  utensils   was    our   coffee-mill.     Turning  to   Jane,   I 
asked  :  '  Why,  how  have  you  managed  to  grind  our  cof- 
fee ?'     '  Lor',  missus,'  she  said,  *  us  darkies  has  done  lam 
to  'trive  since  de  wa',  an'  we  nebber  stops  to  think  cf  we  's 
got  any  thing  to  do  wid  or  no.     I  jist  pounded  de  coffee  in 
a  rag  wid  de  hatchet,  an'  ax  no  questions.'     I  told  her  I 
supposed  that  was  the  reason  wo  had  had  such  poor  coffee. 
'  Step  over  to  that  house,'  I  said,  '  and  ask  the  lady  who 
lives  there  if  she  will  be  so  kind  as  to  loan  us  her  mill  for 
a  very  few  moments,  and  explain  to  her  that  ours  is  on 
the  way — was  left  by  mistake — and    that   a   sick  gentle- 
man  wants   some   coffee.'     '  Lor',    missus,'   Jane   replied, 
'  dat  aint  no  Yankee  lady.'     '  AVell,  Jane,  what  of  that,'  I 
said,  '  she  will  certainly  have  no  objection  to  such  a  slight 
request.'     As  Jane  disappeared  from  the  door,  I  heard  her 
muttering  to  herself,  '  missus  don't  know  dese  folks  down 
here  ;  no  Yankee  'bout  dem,'  etc. 
5* 


106  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

"  In  a  moment  a  violent  outburst  of  angry  words  greeted 
me,  and  stepping  to  the  door  to  see  from  whence  they  came, 
what  was  my  consternation  to  witness  the  lady  of  the 
house,  standing  in  her  door,  which  faced  us,  talking  in  the 
most  excited  manner  to  Jane  :  "  Go,  back,  you  nigger,'  she 

screamed  out,  '  tell  that  d Yankee  woman  I  have  two 

very  nice  coffee-mills,  very  nice  ones,  but  not  for  her  to 
use.'  Jane  replied,  '  I  done  tole  her  you  was  no  Yankee.' 
'  You  did,  ha  !  well  you  told  her  right,  you  miserable  black 
nigger  you ;  and  tell  her  now  she  had  better  watch  the 
cistern  she  makes  her  coffee  from,'  and  then  she  gave  utter- 
ance to  a  demoniacal  laugh — 'ha!  ha!  ha!  arsenic  is  good 
diet  for  Yankees  ! ' 

"All  this  I  distinctly  heard,  and  as  she  saw  me  standing 
so  near  she  seemed  to  talk  at  me  rather  than  to  poor  Jane. 

*'  The  next  morning,  as  we  had  no  matches,  Jane,  took 
two  chips  and  went  over  to  '  tote '  a  coal  of  fire,  to 
kindle  her  own  kitchen -fire,  thinking  to  meet  no  one  but 
Aunt  Chloe,  the  venerable  old  n egress,  who  worked  for 
this  our  next-door  neighbor.  But  the  woman  was  on 
hand,  and  greeted  Jane  with  threats  and  abuses  for 
coming  straight  from  those  d Yankees  into  her  pres- 
ence, and  expressed  herself  as  sorry  for  the  poor  creature, 
that  she  had  not  taken  her  advice,  and  kept  away  from  us. 
We  were  a  pack  of  mud-sills,  come  down  into  this  country 
to  rob  and  plunder  from  them  what  they  had  left  from  '  the 
wa'.'  '  Yes,'  she  said, '  I  will  let  them  have  a  coal  of  fire,  but 
it  will  be  in  the  shape  of  a  torch  touched  to  the  house  some 
dark  night ;  only  '  (she  said  as  if  the  thought  had  just  struck 
her,  and  as  if  to  herself)  '  that  would  be  burning  up  in 
part  the  property  of  one  of  we  una,  as,  thank  God,  the 
house  do  n't  belong  to  they  uns.'  " 

A  few  days  after  this,  Mrs.  Harding  accompanied  me 
to  the  Hebron  plantation  on  horseback.  There  were  no 
roads  distinguishable,  nor  was  there  a  fence  for  miles  around 
to  mark  any  particular  lot.     We  returned  in  the  evening 


INCIDENTS.  107 

by  the  same  route  wo  had  taken  in  the  morning,  and  found 
a  note  awaiting  us,  of  the  most  insolent  nature,  from  our 
neighbor,  sa3'ing  that  her  door-yard  liad  never  before  been 
used  as  a  public  road;  probably  we  knew  no  better — she 
supposed  we  did  not — but  we  must  desist  from  riding  again 
through  her  yard,  or  suffer  the  consequences  ! 

Was  it  any  wonder  that  our  almost  daily  experience  made 
us  feel  like  drawing  closer  and  closer  within  ourselves  ? 

But  there  was  a  change  in  the  tide  of  affairs  with  this  wo- 
man. Somewhat  later,  she  was  led  to  exclaim,  'There 
must  be  some  good  Yankees.'  Her  husband  was  seized 
with  a  terrible  attack  of  hemorrhage.  The  only  practicing 
physician  in  the  country  was  called  in,  and  upon  his  arrival 
advised  sending  in  for  the  Federal  surgeon,  referring  to  Dob- 
son,  saying  "  he  '11  know  just  what  is  best  to  do."  That  great 
assuager  of  passion  and  destroyer  of  prejudice,  Impending 
Death,  spoke  in  the  invalid's  critical  state  ;  so  Dobson  was 
sent  for,  and  upon  his  earnest  solicitation  I  accompanied  him. 
The  poor  man  seemed  to  be  in  almost  a  dying  condition. 
After  a  thorough  examination  into  the  case,  Dobson  pre- 
scribed and  also  named  the  diet  suitable.  AYhen  about  to 
take  our  leave,  I  offered  my  services  as  nurse,  and  said  : 

"If  there  is  any  thing  among  our  fresh  supplies  that 
would  be  acceptable  to  your  sick  husband,  you  must  not  hes- 
itate to  make  known  your  wants.  Whatever  we  have, 
which  he  may  crave,  is  at  j^our  disposal." 

I  was  taken  at  my  word,  and  frequent  was  the  requisi- 
tion made  upon  our  time  and  larder. 

About  this  period,  I  had  an  experience  which,  even  as 
I  now  think  of  it,  notwithstanding  the  lapse  of  years,  sends 
my  blood  chilled  to  ni}^  heart.  It  was  nearly  ten  o'clock,  and 
I  was  preparing  to  retire  for  the  night.  As  was  my  habit,  I 
put  my  hand  into  my  pocket  for  the  wallet  which  contained 
our  money  (about  twelve  hundred  dollars  in  large  bills)  to 
place  it  under  the  pillow.  But  it  vv^as  gone  !  I  quickly 
searched  all  my  pockets;  repeating  the  operation  several 


108  A    YEAR    OF    WRECK. 

times,  in  the  vain  hope  that  I  might  yet  find  it  in  some 
one  of  them.  Then  I  turned  them  inside  out,  feeling  for  it 
as  if  it  were  an  atom,  instead  of  the  bulky  thing  it  was  in 
fact ;  but  all  to  no  purpose  ;  and  finally  I  abandoned  the 
search. 

"  Our  money  is  gone!"  I  exclaimed,  in  agony,  to  Mrs. 
Harding.  Then  I  tried  to  collect  my  thoughts.  When  had 
1  last  seen  it  ?  As  near  as  I  could  remember,  I  had  taken 
it  outlast  that  morning  at  the  village  store  to  pay  for  some 
shoes.  It  might  be  1  had  left  it  on  the  counter,  if  so,  the 
chances  were,  it  having  been  so  early  in  the  morning,  and 
no  customers  in  the  store,  the  merchant  had  found  it,  and 
put  it  away  until  1  should  call  for  it.  The  more  I  thought 
of  it  the  stronger  the  impression  grew  in  my  mind  that 
such  was  the  case,  until  I  felt  there  could  be  no  doubt  about 
it,  and  so  I  said  :  "  Shall  I  go  over  immediately  and  get  it, 
or  shall  I  wait  until  morning  ?" 

Mrs.  Harding  answered  :  "  Wait  until  morning,  by  all 
means.  I  have  heard  gun-shots  during  the  evening,  and 
loud  outcries.  There  is  no  telling  what  disturbance  you 
might  stumble  upon.  It  is  really  not  safe  for  you  to  go 
over  now." 

But  I  felt  I  should  not  sleep  if  I  went  to  bed  until  I  had 
found  the  money,  or  at  least  made  a  search  for  it.  My 
mind  told  me  it  was  almost  certain  to  be  at  the  store.  The 
dilemma  was  uncomfortable.  To  venture  out  was  dan- 
gerous, while  to  remain  would  result  in  a  sleepless  night, 
full  of  anxious  suspense. 

But  the  more  I  thought  the  matter  over,  the  more  I  felt 
it  my  duty  to  go  ;  and  so  I  finally  resolved  to  brave  the 
danger.  If  our  lost  treasure  was  where  I  thought  it  was, 
I  should  soon  have  it  in  my  possession;  if  it  was  not  there, 
I  would  at  least  know  this.  My  belief  had  been  so  strong 
that  we  were  coming  amongst  friends  when  we  came 
South,  that,  beyond  a  couple  of  fowling-pieces,  I  had  not  a 
weapon  in  our  house.     So  J  sallied  forth  without  so  mueli 

V 

7 


INCIDENTS.  109 

as  a  pocket-knife  about  rae,  Mrs.  Ilarding  continuing  to 
protest  that  I  ought  not  to  go. 

I  reached  the  store,  without  adventure.  It  was  closed, 
and  the  lights  were  out,  indicating  that  all  hands  had  re- 
tired for  the  night.  I  rapped  until  some  one  showed  a 
head,  looking  down  over  the  upper  gallery.  It  was  the 
merchant  himself.  1  made  known  my  errand,  and  his  re- 
ply was : 

"I  have  not  seen  your  pocket-book  at  all." 

So,  with  an  apology  for  disturbing  him  at  such  an  un- 
seasonable hour,  I  started  on  my  homeward  journey  with 
a  heavy  heart.  The  sky  was  partly  overcast  with  clouds, 
through  which  the  moon  would  break  at  intervals,  bring- 
ing out  hitherto  dark  objects  in  bold  relief  During  one 
of  these  intervals,  I  noticed  a  crowd  of  men  at  a  considera- 
ble distance,  near  one  of  the  whisky-shops,  fruui  the  door 
of  which  shot  forth  now  a  pale  light,  now  a  bright  one, 
just  as  the  clouds  in  their  movement  either  covered  the 
face  of  the  moon  or  exposed  it. 

The  crowd  appeared  to  be  swaying  to  and  fro,  as  if 
stirred  by  some  unusual  excitement,  when  suddenl}^  came 
the  sharp  crack  of  a  pistol,  and  a  distinct  cry  of — 

''Oh!  I'm  murdered!" 

Then  followed  a  rapid  scattering  of  the  crowd,  as  if  some 
were  pursued  and  others  pursuers.  The  rush  seemed  to  be 
coming  my  way,  so  I  walked  with  a  livelier  pace,  thinking 
that,  being  so  far  beyond  them,  I  could  gain  our  door-yard 
before  they  could  reach  me. 

Again  came  the  crack  of  a  pistol,  and  another  cry  of  an- 
guish, this  time  mucli  nearer;  and,  as  the  moon  came  out 
again  from  under  a  cloud,  I  could  plainly  see  half  a  dozen 
persons  not  ten  rods  in  my  rear,  following  me  as  fast  as 
they  could  run. 

I  was  certainly  pursued,  perhaps  mistaken  for  one  of  the 
crowd  which  had  broken  up  at  the  whisky-shops,  perhaps 
recognized  %-  "  the  mischievous  boys."     It  was  plainly  not 


■4£ 


110  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

safe  to  let  the  crowd  come  up  with  me  ;  even  if  they  had 
no  designs  upon  me,  I  might  flxU  a  victim  before,  in  their 
headlong  fury,  and  enraged  with  drink,  they  could  discover 
their  mistake.  It  would  be  madness  for  me  to  stand  and 
undertake  to  defend  myself,  even  if  I  had  any  weapons  of 
defense.  Six  enraged,  half-drunken,  armed  men  were  al- 
most like  so  many  savage  beasts.  What  could  1 — a  single 
unarmed  man — although  ever  so  prudent  and  sober,  do 
against  such  odds? 

While  these  thoughts  were  flashing  through  my  mind, 
another  pistol-shot  came,  and  this  time  the  ball  sung  past 
my  ear. 

I  was  indeed  pursued  ! 

Then  came  a  race  for  life.  I  could  almost  feel  the  hot 
breath  of  the  pursuers  on  my  blanched  cheek. 

1  had  to  make  a  little  circuit,  which — not  being  familiar 
with  the  ground,  while  my  pursuers  evidently  were  famil- 
iar with  it — enabled  them  to  execute  a  flank  movement  on 
me,  so  that  when  I  came  to  the  new  levee  I  could  distinctly 
hear  their  panting  breaths  close  behind  me.  I  struck  into 
the  fresh,  rain -saturated  soil,  only  to  sink  nearly  to  my 
knees  at  every  stride.  At  this  moment  my  fate  seemed  to 
be  sealed.  What  with  running,  with  fright,  and  with  the 
effort  to  get  through  the  mud,  my  strength  was  nearly 
gone.  Evidently  I  had  not  enough  left  to  cross  the  levee. 
So,  putting  forth  what  remained  in  me,  I  threw  myself 
down  its  steep  side,  a  distance  of  eighteen  feet,  into  the 
water  and  mud  below.  The  douse  into  the  water  had  the 
effect  to  revive  me  a  little,  and  so  I  floundered  along  in  it, 
until  I  reached  our  door-yard,  and  finally  our  gallery, 
where  I  sank  down  exhausted,  and  where  Mrs.  Harding 
found  me  as  pale  as  a  ghost,  and  with  my  garments  torn, 
and  covered  from  head  to  foot  with  mud  and  water. 

I  shall  never  forget  the  unearthly  yell  my  pursuers  sent 
up,  when  my  sudden  disappearance  down  the  side  of  the 
levee  baffled  their  pursuit ;  and  I  shall  never  cease  to  feel 


INCIDENTS.  Ill 

thankful  to  that  black  cloud  which  shut  in  the  face  of  the 
moon  just  the  instant  before  I  took  that  headlong  leap 
down  the  levee's  side,  thus  covering  the  earth  with  deep 
darkness,  all  the  more  decided  because  of  the  bright  moon- 
light which  had  just  preceded  it,  and  thus  shutting  me 
completely  out  of  view. 

A  bath  and  stimulants  revived  me  after  a  while,  and  my 
thankfulness  for  my  narrow  escape  for  the  moment  com- 
pletely overshadowed  our  loss.  I  had  barely  escaped,  it  is 
true  ;  but  still  1  had  escaped  without  a  scratch.  It  would 
be  a  lesson  to  me  for  the  future  not  to  expose  myself  at 
night.  As  for  the  loss  of  our  money,  1  would  try  and  not 
have  it  occur  again.  It  would  take  nearly  my  year's  sal- 
ary to  return  it  to  the  Dobson  enterprise.  But  it  was 
perhaps  well  spent,  viewing  it  in  the  light  of  so  much  ex- 
perience-money. There  must  be  rigid  economy  in  the 
household  to  make  good  this  large  sum.  The  old  clothes 
would  have  to  do  for  the  present,  and  for  a  long  stretch  in 
the  future.  There  must  be  no  purchase  of  bonnets  or  hats, 
and  fashion-plates  must  have  the  cold  shoulder.  There 
would  have  to  be  some  "shinning"  done,  and  some  little 
bills  would  have  to  remain  unpaid  for  a  year,  or  until  w^e 
began  realizing  on  our  crops. 

Thus  reasoning,  I  lifted  up  the  pillow  to  get  my  night- 
shirt, when  what  should  I  behold  but  my  lost  pocket-book, 
safe  in  its  nightly  resting-place !  So  much  of  a  habit  had 
this  become,  that  I  had  deposited  it  there  instinctively. 

I  never  said  any  thing  about  this  night's  experience  in 
the  village,  and  do  not  know  whether  I  was  recognized  by 
my  pursuers,  or  whether  I  was  mistaken  for  one  of  the 
crowd  from  the  drinking-shop. 

I  inquired  of  the  merchant,  when  I  visited  his  store  two 
days  later,  as  to  the  affair,  and  was  told  that  it  was  the 
"mischievous  boys  on  a  rampage." 

"Any  body  killed?  "  I  asked. 

"  One  negro  killed,  and  two  wounded,"  he  answered. 


112  A    YEAR    OF    WRECK. 

*•  AYere  there  any  arrests?  " 

"Of  what  use  are  arrests?  The  boys  will  have  their 
mischief." 

And  the  merchant  told  but  the  truth. 

The  "boys  "  would  and  did  have  their  mischief,  even  at 
the  expense  of  human  life,  and  at  the  sacrifice  of  the  best 
interests  of  the  country.  If  this  state  of  affairs  prevailed 
throughout  the  South,  I  thought,  it  would  see  many  dark 
days  before  it  could  ever  see  brighter  ones.  This  was  evi- 
dently to  be  the  order  of  things  in  this  locality,  and  we 
had  a  long  and  wearisome  journey  before  us.  Our  path- 
way would  lead,  as  it  were,  through  the  "  valley  of  the 
shadow  of  death."  How  many  of  us  would  live  to  see  the 
promised  land  beyond? 


CHAPTEE  XXYI. 

dobson's  arrival. 

It  was  our  fate  to  expect  Dobson  some  time  before  he 
came.  This  we  could  ill  afford  to  do.  The  season  was 
creeping  on  apace,  and  there  was  a  deal  of  work  before  us- 
Our  worst  bramble-grown  patches,  the  most  tedious  part 
of  our  work,  were  as  jet  untouched.  I  had  gotten  things  on 
the  plantation  in  tolerable  shape  only  by  a  great  effort,  and 
it  was  diflScult  to  keep  them  so.  I  had  calculated  on 
being  able  to  hold  out  until  Dobson  should  be  due,  and 
when  that  time  came  and  no  Dobson,  my  heart  sank  within 
me.  As  each  succeeding  day  passed,  and  he  did  not  appear 
with  his  reinforcements,  our  hirelings  became  impatient, 
and  showed  further  signs  of  demoralization.  AYith  the 
uncertainty  of  river  navigation,  I  had  given  him  two  oi 


V 


DOBSON'S  ARRIVAL.  113 

three  days'  margin,  but  now  nearly  a  week  beyond  the  time 
fixed  had  dragged  its  slow  length  along,  and  yet  he  was  not 
come. 

Everj^  day,  and,  indeed,  several  times  each  day,  great 
steamboats  would  come  puffing  down  the  river,  when  I 
would  exclaim,  "  There  at  last  is  our  help."  Then  I  would 
gallop  out  to  the  landing  in  high  spirits,  expecting  the  boat 
to  sto]),  but"  only  to  be  disapj^ointed. 

Finally,  after  a  week  of  painful  suspense,  Dobsoii,  with 
his  fiimily,  arrived.  But,  beyond  two  hostlers  for  bis  stud 
of  horses,  which  he  brought  with  him,  he  had  not  a  single 
man  ! 

He  arrived  at  night,  remaining  on  the  wharf-boat  until 
daylight,  and  came  over  to  the  house  just  as  I  was  start- 
ing off  to  the  plantation. 

In  my  eagerness,  thinking  he  might  possibly  have  over- 
looked my  instructions   to   have  the  labor  landed  on   the 
plantation,  remembering  how  the  '•'  mischievous  boys"  were 
in  the  habit  of  stampeding  immigration  lauded  at  the  vil- 
lage, and  shuddering  at  the  thought  of  the  result  to  us  if 
ours  should  be  dispersed  in  that  way — with  a  vague  fear, 
too,  in  my  heart,  arising  perhaps  from   this  thought,  per- 
haps from  some  premonition  of  the  almost  stunning  blow, 
which  the  answer  to  my  question  was  about  to  administer 
— my  first  inquiry,  after  the  customary  greeting,  was  : 
'•  Where  have  3'ou  left  the  labor  you  brought  down  ?  " 
"  I  brought  no  labor,"  he  replied. 
"  You  brought  no  labor,  did  you  say  ?  " 
"  Yes." 

"  Did  you  receive  my  letter  ordering  more  hands?  " 
"  No  ;  did  you  write  me  on  that  subject?  " 
"  Yes,  indeed  ;  I  wrote  you  in  full,  ordering  twenty-five 
hands." 

"  Do  we  need  help  so  badly?"  he  asked,  anxiously. 
"Need  it?     Failure  stares  us  in  the  face  unless  we  iret 
it.     Was  there  plenty  of  help  at  home  ?"  I  asked. 


114  A   YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

"  For  anght  I  know  there  was.  I  have  two  hostlers;  I 
can  rub  along  with  one,  the  other  can  go  up  to  the  planta- 
tion and  go  to  work." 

"  Send  him  along,"  I  said,  and  turned  away  sick  at  heart. 
Some  one  must  go  North  and  get  the  labor  we  had  expected. 
Who  should  it  be  ?  I  thought  of  Adjutant  Johnson,  and 
went  at  once  to  see  him.  The  poor  fellow  had  evidently 
experienced  a  rough  night.  He  seemed  so  weak  that  a 
puff  of  wind  would  blow  him  over.  In  his  enfeebled  con- 
dition, I  could  hardly  make  up  my  mind  to  tell  him  of  our 
disappointment.  But  his  quick  preception  read  instantly, 
from  my  tell-tale  face,  that  something  had  gone  awry. 

"  "What  is  the  matter,  Mr.  Harding  ?  "  he  cried,  instantly. 
"  You  look  as  if  you  'd  lost  your  last  friend." 

"  Not  quite  so  bad  as  that,  my  dear  fellow,"  I  replied, 
"  as  long  as  you  're  with  us,"  and  then  1  told  him  how  my 
letter  had  miscarried,  and  it  was  a  consolation  to  me  to  see 
that  his  disappointment  was  not  less  than  mine.  I  was 
spending  nearly  fourteen  hours  out  of  the  twenty-four  on 
the  plantation,  leading  the  field-labor  and  supervising 
every  thing  that  was  done.  It  seemed  to  be  utterly  impos- 
sible for  me  to  get  away.  I  had  taken  so  much  of  the  bur- 
den of  the  plantation  on  my  shoulders  that  I  could  not  lay 
it  down  until  we  had  a  reinforcement  of  labor.  ''  Xo,  you 
must  remain,"  Johnson  said,  '"'and  bear  the  load."  It 
would  be  at  least  fourteen  days  before  we  could  expect  re- 
lief It  was  by  no  means  certain  that  our  present  force 
would  not  stampede  in  a  body  when  they  found  Dobson 
had  not  brought  any  reinforcements. 

'•  How  would  it  do  to  write  to  Mr.  Gale,  and  ask  him  to 
employ  some  one  to  procure  the  labor  and  bring  it  down  ?  " 
I  asked. 

Johnson  replied  instantly  :  "  It  won't  do  at  all !  "     And 
then  his  brows  knit  for  a  moment,  as  if  in  deep  thought. 
Soon  I  could  see  his  bosom   heave,  just  as  a  person's  wil 
when  about  to  volunteer  a  diflScult  undertaking;  then,  as 


dobson's  arrival.  115 

if  he  had  made  up  his  mind  to  it,  his  eyes  lit  up,  and  ho 
cxchiimed  : 

"  Ko,  there  's  no  use  thinking  of  it,  you  can  't  go  ;  there  's 
nothing  left  but  for  me  to  go.  I  '11  get  ready  and  start  at 
once,  and  with  God's  help,"  he  said,  raising  his  eyes  rever- 
ently, "  I  will  bring  you  reinforcements  within  two 
weeks  !  " 

So  it  was  decided  that  I  should  remain  at  my  post,  try 
and  hold  the  labor  together,  and  kee^)  things  running  as 
best  I  could,  while  Johnson,  invalid  as  he  was,  should  go 
for  the  help.  Ecluctantly,  and  with  many  misgivings,  I  as- 
sented to  his  part  of  the  programme.  And  then  this  brave 
boy  got  up  from  his  bed  of  sickness  to  make  his  prepara- 
tions for  a  journey  of  three  thousand  miles,  at  a  season  of 
the  year  w^hen  the  weather  was  inclement,  knowing  that 
he  would  have  to  work  hard  to  get  his  laborers  together, 
and  then  extend  an  unceasing  watch  over  them  on  his  way 
down — all  this,  when  he  was  really  not  able  to  ride  two 
miles  in  his  saddle  !  And  all  this  he  undertook  without  a 
murmur. 

It  has  occurred  to  me  since  that  he  must  have  known 
this  journey  would  be  his  death-blow;  that  undoubtedly, 
while  knitting  his  brow,  as  I  have  mentioned,  he  was  re- 
volving this  very  thought  in  his  mind  ;  but,  notwithstand- 
ing the  almost  certain  result  to  himself,  he  had  determined 
to  accomplish  this  task,  and  then,  if  necessary,  as  its  pen- 
alty, lie  down  and  die.  In  other  words,  to  save  a  scheme 
which  was  absorbing  his  heart  and  soul  from  utter  and 
complete  failure,  he  would  offer  himself  up  as  a  sacrifice, 
and  before  the  breath  should  leave  his  body  he  would  bring 
us  succor. 

So  he  started  on  his  journey,  with  courage  shining  in  his 
undimmed  eye,  but  with  a  quaver  in  his  voice,  an  ema- 
ciated frame,  and  an  unsteady  step,  showing  how  weak  he 
was  in  fiict.  I  thought  of  the  candle  in  the  socket  when  I 
gave  him  my  parting  word,  and  as  I  rode  up  to  the  planta- 


116  A    YEAR    OF    WRECK. 

tion  that  forenoon  I  forgot  the  hard  task  I  had  before  me, 
in  my  sympathy  for  him,  and  my  heart  was  filled  with 
sadness. 

It  was  a  charming  spring  day — the  meadow  larks  con- 
stantly flying  up  before  me,  sending  forth  their  note  of 
cheer;  coveys  of  quail  flushing  up  all  about;  and  ducks 
splashing  and  quacking  in  the  slough  water  in  front  of  the 
levee  along  which  my  pathway  lay.  The  willows  fringing 
the  bank  of  the  river  were  just  putting  on  their  green. 
The  atmosphere  was  fresh  and  bracing,  the  sun,  with  its 
grateful  rays,  dispelling  the  last  vestige  of  chill  from  the 
air,  and  pausing  just  there,  so  that  there  should  not  bo 
a  breath  of  uncomfortable  warmth,  and  making  that 
happy  medium  between  heat  and  cold,  so  seldom  exj^eri- 
enced  outside  of  the  semi-tropical  regions,  but  so  common 
here.  The  dewberry  vines  were  dotting  the  fields  with 
their  white  blossoms ;  patches  of  green  cane  were  visible 
in  the  distance,  and  there  were  freedmen  at  work  in  the 
fields — some  at  the  plow,  others  breaking  down  the  enor- 
mous weed-growths  which  encumbered  the  plantations,  rak- 
ing them  up  into  huge  piles  and  then  burning  them,  the 
huge  volumes  of  fire  and  smoke  shooting  up  into  the  air — 
the  negroes  all  the  time  singing  their  rude  farm  melodies. 
Ordinarily,  these  sights  and  sounds  would  have  filled  mo 
with  pleasure,  but  in  my  present  mood  they  jarred  upon 
my  feelings.  A  funeral  dirge  was  constantly  sounding  in 
my  ear  ;  the  wan  face  and  feeble  frame,  with  the  un- 
healthy light  in  his  eye,  of  my  friend,  who  was  now  steam- 
ing up  the  river,  were  photographed  in  my  mind.  As 
often  as  I  would  try  to  make  myself  believe  that  his  case 
was  not,  after  all,  so  bad,  there  would  come  up  that  quav- 
ering voice,  that  unsteady''  step,  that  cold  bony  hand  I  had 
grasped  at  parting,  and  that  whole  frame  bearing  every 
mark  of  being  thoroughly  possessed  by  disease,  with  noth- 
ing in  his  favor  but  his  indomitable  will  and  courage, 
which  had  just  started  him  on  his  Northern  journey.    Was 


dobson's  arrival.  117 

it  not  almost  certain,  having  such  will  and  determination, 
that  with  long-continued,  careful  nursing,  under  these  ge- 
nial skies,  health  would  again  send  its  glow  through  his 
frame?  And  was  it  not  equally  certain  that  these  two 
weeks  of  exposure  would  carry  him  to  his  grave?  I  felt  it 
to  be  so.  Then  had  I  not  been  guilty  of  his  death  in  giv- 
ing my  consent  to  his  making  this  trip  ? 

Keader,  this  is  no  fancy  sketch.  Every  line  on  each 
page  of  this  book  is  true.  My  statements  are  simply  those 
of  incidents  in  my  experience  as  a  cotton-planter.  This 
young  man  went  into  the  army  full  of  health.  He  left  it, 
as  thousands  left  it,  a  victim  of  camp  dj^sentery.  Notwith- 
standing his  disease,  he  had  remained  in  the  service,  and 
was  only  mustered  out  at  the  close  of  the  war.  The  fact 
of  his  remaining  in  the  service  long  after  disease  had 
stricken  him  showed  the  metal  in  his  composition.  He  had 
a  hard  experience  in  getting  our  expedition  down,  and  en- 
countered rough  treatment  and  fare  until  we  had  reached 
Hebron.  AYe  had  taken  him  into  our  family,  and  Mrs. 
Harding  was  nursing  him  as  tenderly  as  if  he  were  our 
own  child.  We  felt  him  to  be  improving  when  his  trip  to 
Yicksburg  to  procure  labor  was  undertaken.  That  had 
done  him  harm.  He  was  just  recovering  from  that,  how^- 
ever,  and  seemed  to  be  gaining  somewhat,  that  is,  his  par- 
oxysms were  less  frequent  and  a  little  less  violent,  and  in 
his  breast  the  light  of  hope  burned  brightly.  I  felt  that  he 
could  not  die,  and  he  seemed  to  think  so,  too,  and  spoke  of 
his  early  recovery  with  perfect  confidence,  laid  his  -plana 
for  the  summer,  and  dwelt  upon  how  much  he  was  going 
to  help  us  when  he  got  a  little  stronger.  Now  he  was  on 
this  long  hard  journey  ! 

Dobson's  hostler  had  reached  the  plantation  before  me. 
Billy  had  given  him  a  plow,  and  put  him  to  work  with  the 
rest.  It  seems  Dobson  had  not  brought  him  all  the  way 
from  home,  but  had  picked  him  up  at  Memphis,  and  that 
he  had  been  brought  up  in  the  cotton-field  ;  he  was  there- 


118  A    YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

fore  a  valuable  addition.  He  was  one  of  those  jolly,  taking 
negroes,  and  had  told  of  Dobson's  arrival  without  rein- 
forcements in  such  a  droll  manner  as  to  heal  much  of  the 
force  of  the  general  disappointment,  although  the  hands 
were  more  or  less  surly  much  of  the  time,  notwithstanding 
my  report  that  I  had  dispatched  Adjutant  Johnson  for  re- 
lief, which  we  might  expect  to  get  at  the  end  of  two  weeks. 


CHAPTEE  XXVII. 

THE    FIRST   PAY-DAY,    AND   WHAT    CAME   OF   IT. 

As  a  means  of  breaking  the  disappointment  of  Dobson's 
failure  to  our  laborers,  and  bridging  over,  as  it  were,  the 
period  until  Johnson's  reinforcement  should  arrive,  we  de- 
cided to  have  a  settlement,  and  to  pay  them  their  due,  less 
the  half  which  was  to  be  reserved  until  the  end  of  the 
year,  according  to  the  rules  adopted  by  the  Freedman's 
Bureau,  then  in  authority  in  the  South. 

When  we  decided  on  this  plan,  I  informed  the  hands  of  it. 
This  had  the  effect,  as  we  supposed  it  would,  to  put  them  in 
good  humor.  It  had  been  my  intention,  as  previously 
stated,  not  to  settle  with  the  white  laborers  until  Dobson 
brought  us  relief,  and  then  to  pay  them  off  and  discharge 
them. 

In  engaging  our  force  of  laborers,  we  had  contracted  to 
pay  them  whatever  wages  were  customary  in  the  country 
where  we  were  going.  Eighteen  dollars  a  month  for  first- 
class  field-hands  we  found  to  be  the  usual  price.  This- was 
three  dollars  higher  than  Dobson's  estimate  called  for,  and 
it  would  add  eighteen  hundred  dollars  to  that  estimate  for 
the  year,  thus  giving  it  another  black  eye.     But  as  often  as 


THE  FIRST  PAY-DAY,  AND  WHAT  CAME  OF  IT.  119 

these  extra  items  of  expense  came  up,  and  they  were  com- 
ing frequently,  and  from  present  indications  would  make  a 
good  round  sum  in  the  aggregate,  I  would  think  of  our 
enormous  profit  at  the  end  of  the  year.  What  did  ten  or 
fifteen  or  even  twenty  thousand  dollars,  more  or  less,  mat- 
ter in  an  enterprise  where  there  was  to  be  a  profit  of  three 
hundred  and  fifty  thousand  dollars  in  four  years  ?  Besides, 
there  was  no  heljD  for  this  extra  item  of  expense.  It  was 
the  custom  of  the  country.  We  had  agreed  to  abide  by 
that;  and  even  if  we  bad  not  so  agreed,  it  would  be  un- 
reasonable for  us  to  expect  to  hold  our  labor  at  fifteen  dol- 
lars a  month,  when  all  our  neighbors  were  paying  eigh- 
teen, or  at  least  agreeing  to  pay  eighteen,  and  jumping  at 
the  chance. 

A  month's  work  meant  twenty-six  days,  and  we  found  it 
to  be  the  usual  custom  here  to  allow  the  laborers  to  take  at 
least  half  of  Saturday  as  a  holiday,  so  that,  at  best,  they 
worked  but  five  and  a  half  days  out  of  seven.  Some  plant- 
ers allowed  the  whole  of  Saturday  as  an  extra  inducement 
to  get  labor.  This  Saturday  holiday,  it  seems,  was  a  relic 
of  slavery.  During  the  cultivating  season  in  the  slave 
times,  there  was  always  plenty  of  leisure,  and  during  that 
season  it  was  customary  for  the  slaves  to  have  their  Satur- 
day holiday,  when  the  women  would  do  up  their  washing- 
for  the  week,  and  the  men  would  get  passes  to  go  to  the 
village  and  sell  their  "  crap  "  of  eggs  and  poultry,  or  to 
visit  their  "  took-up  women  "  on  the  neighborhood  planta- 
tions, or  would  lie  idle  about  their  own  quarters. 

When  the  picking  season  set  in  the  Saturday  holiday 
ceased.  During  this  period,  running  from  September  fre- 
quently into  March,  it  was  work  from  Monday  morning 
until  Saturday  night.  But  our  hands,  being  up-country 
people,  and  knowing  nothing  of  this  native  custom,  worked 
all  day  Saturday,  which  made  up  in  a  small  part  for  our 
deficiency  in  numbers  and  quality. 

The  plan  of  reserving  half  the  pay  until  the  end  of  the 


120  A    YEAR    OF   WRECK. 

year  was  the  Government's,  and  was  intended  to  accom- 
plish a  two-fold  object,  viz.  :  to  secure  the  planter  in  the 
possession  of  his  labor  until  his  crop  was  made  and  gath- 
ered, and  to  prevent  the  freedraen  from  squandering  all 
their  wages  as  they  earned  them.  The  theory  was,  that 
each  freedman,  by  this  provision,  would  have  a  handsome 
little  sura  laid  b}',  at  the  close  of  the  year,  and  that  this 
was  a  part  of  the  necessary  education  to  make  them  a 
thrifty  people. 

When  Saturday  came,  our  accounts  were  ready.  We  had 
made  up  for  each  man  a  statement  showing  his  wages  to 
date,  then  his  purchases  in  the  way  of  tobacco,  shoes,  cloth- 
ing, etc. ;  then  the  difference,  which  was  the  balance  due 
him.  There  was  not  a  single  man,  either  white  or  black, 
who  had  not  already  traded  over  half  his  wages,  so  that 
there  was  not  really  a  cent  of  cash  due  them.  We  had 
found  them,  as  before  stated,  ragged,  and  having  clothed 
and  shod  them,  they  ought  not  in  reason  to  have  ex- 
pected any  thing.  But  they  were  a  very  unreasonable  set, 
and  particularly  the  whites,  who  plead  hard  for  the  bal- 
ance due  them. 

"Pay  us  all,  just  this  month,"  Mr.  Harding,  they  one 
and  all  urged,  -'we  must  have  a  little  cash  to  buy  us  such 
articles  of  necessity  as  you  have  n't  got  in  your  plantation 
store."  And  then  they  looked  longingly,  and  like  hungry 
persons,  at  the  pile  of  greenbacks  lying  before  me  on  my 
desk. 

There  was  really  no  excuse  for  us  to  reserve  the  money 
due  the  whites  until  the  end  of  the  year,  as  they  were  not 
under  the  protection  or  government  of  the  Freedman's 
Bureau,  and  as  we  did  not  intend  to  keep  them  a  day  after 
we  got  black  labor  to  supply  their  places.  Our  only  pur- 
pose, in  the  first  place,  in  holding  back  any  of  their  due, 
was  to  prevent  them  from  running  away  and  leaving  us  in 
the  lurch.  But  there  was  nothing  in  their  manner  which 
indicated  any  such  design  ;  on  the  contrary,  they  talked  as 


THE  FIRST  PAY-DAY,  AND  WHAT  CAME  OF  IT.  121 

if  they  intended  to  stay  right  along.  So  we  paid  them  in 
full.  As  for  the  blacks,  we  paid  each  one  of  them  a  por- 
tion of  what  was  due  on  their  last  half,  and  gave  them  a 
Frecdman's  Bureau  ticket,  bearing  our  signature,  for  the 
balance. 

That  night  our  entire  white  force,  with  the  exception  of 
two  of  the  most  worthless  of  the  worthless  batch,  ran 
away,  and  that  was  the  last  we  ever  saw  of  any  one  of 
them.  "We  told  the  two  left  behind  they  might  go  with  the 
rest.  Thus  ingloriously  ended  our  experiment  in  under- 
taking to  cultivate  cotton  with  white  labor. 

Billy  came  down  to  the  house  Sunday  morning  to  bring 
lis  the  information  about  the  white  labor,  evidently  expect- 
ing we  should  feel  very  bad  over  it.  And  it  did  annoy  us, 
but  it  was  only  because  the  rascals  had  outwitted  us. 

Billy  said  :  "It  is  no  loss  at  all.  They  have  hindered 
more  than  they  have  helped.  Now  I  have  nothing  to  do 
but  to  look  after  the  blacks,  and  I  really  believe  we  can 
accomplish  more  labor  with  them  alone,  than  we  accom- 
plished with  both  squads  before.  The  whites  have  been 
the  chief  cause  of  the  demoralization  among  the  blacks, 
which  has  cost  you  so  much  trouble  to  arrest,  and  now 
that  the  latter  are  free  from  that  influence,  I  believe  we  will 
get  along  splendidly." 

As  for  Clara,  when  we  saw  her  Monday,  her  black  face 
beamed  with  delight,  and  she  was  grinning  from  ear  to 
ear. 

"I  declar,"  said  she,  "it  was  a  pow'ful  riddance,  dose 
white  folks  runnin'  away.  I's  been  used  to  bossin'  niggers 
all  my  born  days  in  der  eatin',  and  kin  git  along  wid  dem 
fust  rate,  but  dis  was  de  fust  squad  of  white  folks  whose 
eatin'  I  ebber  'tem'ted  to  boss,  and  dey  has  pestered  me 
mightily.  I  was  done  used-up  wid  mindin'  dat  dey  should  n't 
dash  out  de  grub,  and  no  mistake. 

"  De  lazy,  triflin'  kreters  was  aimin'  to  git  away  widout 
G 


122  A   YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

payin'  ole  Clara  dere  washin'  Hioney,  and  ax'd  me  to  wait  til 
Monday,  dey  hab  no  small  change  ;  but  dey  did  n't  fool  me, 
1  got  de  las'  cent  dat  was  comin'  to  me,  I  bad  nuff  change 
fur  dere  big  bills,  an'  got  my  money  fore  de  sun  sot.  Dere 
runnin'  away  was  your  pay,  Mr.  Hardin',  for  your  goodness 
to  'em  ;  wheat  bread  ebery  day  in  de  week,  and  dried-apple 
puddin'  for  Sunday,  was  more'n  dey  'sarved.  I  hope  dere 
ain't  many  white  folks  up  Norf  's  low-down  as  dat  crowd ; 
dey  was  wuss  dan  a  low-down  triflin'  nigger." 

Upon  examining  their  barracks,  we  found  the  runaways 
had  taken  with  them  the  blankets,  which  belonged  to  us,  so 
that  we  were  out  of  pocket  not  less  than  fifty  dollars  on 
this  score.  Billy  spent  the  day  getting  their  scattered 
tools  together  (each  hand  was  charged  with  his  tools),  find- 
ing them  all,  save  two  axes  and  a  hoe,  in  good  condition. 
The  fact  is,  they  had  n't  worked  hard  enough  to  hurt  them 
much. 

Our  blacks  were  relieved  at  the  disappearance  of  the 
whites.  Trifling  as  most  of  them  were,  they  seemed  to 
regard  themselves  as  above  the  motley  white  crowd,  and 
"  de  wheat  bread  of  de  white  folks,  long  side  of  dere  hoe 
cake,"  and  many  other  little  favors  which  the  whites  had, 
and  which  they  had  not,  was  no  longer  there  to  "  pester" 
them. 

Never  was  there  a  better  evidence,  in  a  small  way,  of 
the  truth  of  the  "irrepressible  conflict"  than  in  this  lit- 
tle experience  of  ours.  Never  was  there  a  more  forcible 
illustration  of  the  utter  fallacy  or  impossibility  of  success- 
fully attempting  to  feed  and  lodge  two  men,  who  are  grind- 
ing the  same  grist,  in  different  stalls,  and  on  different  diet, 
simply  because  one  is  black  and  the  other  white.  "What  is 
flesh  for  one  must  be  flesh  for  the  other,  and  where  there  is 
equality  in  labor,  perfect  equality  must  run  through  the 
whole  government. 

Even  with  the  best  material  on  either  side  to  deal  with 
(and,  indeed,  the  better  the  class  of  labor  the  more  difficult  it 


THE    FIRST   PAY-DAY,    AND    WHAT    CAME    OP   IT.         123 

would  have  been  to  make  the  distinction),  our  attempt  to 
put  white  and  black  laborers  alongside  of  each  other  in 
the  field,  and  then  to  separate  them  in  bed,  board,  and  at 
the  i^ay-tablc,  would  have  proved  a  failure.  It  was,  per- 
haps, just  as  well  that  we  had  furnished  ourselves  such 
poor  material  with  which  to  test  this  experiment — for  we 
had  now  tested  it  to  our  hearts'  content,  as  well  as  to  our 
great  annoyance,  and  at  much  expense  ;  it  would  have 
been  a  pity  to  have  spoiled  a  better  class  of  labor  in  the 
operation. 

This  was  about  the  time  those  negro  regiments  were  to 
be  mustered  out  at  Vicksburg.  Our  diminished  and  now 
diminutive  force  warned  us  that  we  must  leave  no  stone 
unturned  to  secure  labor.  I  felt  absolutely  certain  John- 
son would  succeed,  but  I  might  get  a  few  hands  by  taking 
a  run  down  to  Vicksburg,  sooner  than  he  could  bring  them. 
Now,  that  Billy  had  only  the  blacks  to  deal  with,  I  could 
be  spared ;  besides,  Dobson  was  here,  and  would  assist  in 
looking  after  things  in  my  absence. 

I  knew,  now,  just  the  kind  of  hands  we  wanted,  and  if  I 
went  down  myself,  I  might  get  some  very  choice  ones. 
There  was  no  possible  danger  of  our  being  overstocked 
with  labor,  as  the  planters  of  the  country  were  paying  the 
labor-brokers  in  Memphis,  Vicksburg,  and  J^ew  Orleans  as 
much  as  twenty -five  dollars  apiece  for  hands  delivered  on 
the  steamboat.  If  we  should,  through  Johnson's  and  my 
own  efforts  chance  to  get  a  surplus  stock,  our  neighbors,  we 
knew,  would  be  rejoiced  to  take  them,  paying  us  the  ex- 
pense incurred  in  getting  them ;  so  I  resolved  to  make  a  trip 
to  Vicksburg. 


124  A   YEAR   OP   WRECK. 


CHAPTEK   XXYIIl. 

STEAMBOAT    AND   VICKSBURG    EXPERIENCES — LETTER    WRIT- 
TEN  TO    A   NORTHERN  FRIEND. 

"  The  steamboat  on  which  I  took  passage  was  full  of  peo- 
ple, who,  with  scarcely  an  exception,  were  planters  like  my- 
self in  search  of  labor.  Some  of  my  fellow-passengers 
were  going  as  far  as  Virginia  and  the  Carolinas  ;  in  fact, 
the  whole  upland  country  of  the  South  is  being  scoured  to 
get  labor  to  fill  up  the  Mississij^pi  delta.  Those  on  our 
steamer  came  from  different  j)oints  on  the  river,  and  I  soon 
found  from  their  conversation  that  we  had  plenty  of  com- 
pany in  our  great  need  of  more  help.  On  board  the 
steamer,  and  at  Vicksburg,  this  is  the  cry,  and  great 
wrath  is  expressed  at  the  disposition  on  the  part  of  the 
'lazy  niggers,'  as  they  are  called,  to  crowd  into  the 
cities,  and  refuse  to  go  to  work  upon  the  plantations. 
There  is  much  loud  talk  that  the  Yankee  government, 
which  freed  them,  should  force  them  to  go  to  the  country; 
and  every  one  is  urging  the  necessity  of  getting  up  neigh- 
borhood combinations  to  control  the  j)rice  of  labor,  which 
shall  also  define  the  causes  for  which  labor  shall  be  dis- 
missed (and  when  so  dismissed  no  one  is  to  be  allowed  to 
employ  it).  Dismissal  is  to  be  a  sort  of  Cain's  mark,  and 
the  theory  is  that,  rather  than  be  thus  disgraced,  the  freed- 
men  will  be  willing  to  submit  to  any  terms  the  planter  may 
be  disposed  to  inflict.  The  Louisiana  Legislature  has  already 
virtually  adopted  the  pass-system,  which  existed  in  slavery 
times,  by  the  enactment  of  a  law  which  will  have  the  effect 
to  prevent  negroes  from  running  from  one  plantation  to 
another,  and  it  is  hoped  by  the  planters  that  every  South- 
ern State  will  make  liaste  to  do  likewise. 


>J 


STEAMBOAT  AND  VICKSBURQ  EXPERIENCES,  ETC.        125 

"  I  do  n't  bear  of  a  single  utterance  that  does  not  look 
to  a  modified  form  of  slavery.  This  intention  is  freely 
stated.  Tlie  idea  is,  to  pin  each  negro  down  to  some  par- 
ticular locality,  and  to  keep  him  there.  All  agree  that 
the  attitude  of  the  President  is  such  as  to  warrant  them  in 
the  belief  that  the  loss  of  their  slaves  is  but  temporary. 
Every  body  seems  to  believe  that  he  is  leading  a  great 
ground-swell  in  the  North  in  their  favor ;  that  through  him 
they  are  shortly  to  gain  all  they  have  lost  by  the  conflict 
of  arms. 

"  The  people  say  it  will  be  difficult  to  get  the  negroes  out 
of  the  cities,  and  they  will  have  to  make  large  promises  to 
do  it ;  but,  once  they  get  them,  they  will  bold  them  by 
means  of  their  rigid  neighborhood  rules,  and  legislative 
enactments.  Some  say  the  negro  owes  them  a  living,  and 
they  are  boutid,  with  or  without  the  President's  help, 
be  shall  discharge  the  debt !  With  these,  the  idea  of  pay- 
ing for  labor  is  absurd. 

"An  old  man  said  he  never  had  paid  '  nigger  '  wages,  and 
he  was  too  old  to  commence  it  now,  especially  in  view  of  the 
position  of  the  President.  No  one  seems  to  understand 
how  to  treat  free  labor,  nor  do  these  people  seem  to  care  to 
learn.  They  say  the  negro  is  free,  by  the  letter  of  the  law, 
but  in  spirit,  and  in  their  hearts,  and  in  fact,  he  is  as  much 
the  slave  as  ever. 

"They  say  they  are  soliciting  his  labor,  it  is  true,  but  it 
is  simply  because  a  hated  power,  which  they  can  not  resist, 
has  made  this  step  necessary  for  the  time  being.  If  prom- 
ises will  induce  any  of  the  '  lazy  vagabonds  '  to  come  away 
with  them,  why  there  will  be  no  lack  of  these,  but  once  at 
home  they  declare  they  will  show  them  a  thing  or  two  ! 

"  I  do  not  assert  this  to  be  the  feeling  of  all  the  passen- 
gers on  the  boat ;  what  I  say  is,  that  it  is  the  public  ex- 
pression, and  if  there  is  a  difference  of  opinion  it  is  not  as- 
serted. 

"Undoubtedly,  judging  from  what  I  have  heard  on  this 


126  A    YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

trip,  not  only  on  the  steamboat,  but  in  the  mouths  of  thou- 
sands of  planters,  who  are  here  after  labor,  the  Southern 
idea  is,  that  the  abolition  of  slaver^"  is  but  temporary  ;  that 
even  now  it  is  only  a  technical  abolition,  and  through  the 
agency  of  the  President,  somehow  or  in  some  way,  slavery 
will  be  restored.  Until  then,  they  say  they  will  have  to 
use  the  so-called  free  negro,  and,  in  order  to  get  him  to  go 
home  with  them,  and  go  to  work,  they  must  make  wild 
promises  as  to  what  they  will  do.  'Any  thing  to  get  him, 
so  as  to  keep  the  mill  running  until  the  slave  millennium 
comes  again,'  said  a  small,  black-eyed,  sallow-complexioned, 
broad-hatted,  small-booted  Mississippi  planter,  with  a  huge 
mustache,  no  vest,  and  spurs,  to  a  crowd  of  a  hundred 
other  planters,  in  the  front  of  one  of  the  Yicksburg  hotels 
— to  which  they  all  seemed  to  respond  aflSrmatively. 

"  It  would  be  a  bold  man  now  who  would  IfTnt  at  the  idea 
of  renting  land  to  negroes,  or  of  their  owning  the  mules,  or 
the  farm  implements,  or  of  their  being  educated.  Such  a 
person  would  only  subject  himself  to  personal  violence.  The 
central,  controlling  idea  is,  to  get  the  negro  uj^on  the  plan- 
tation ;  once  there,  to  place  him  as  nearly  in  a  condition 
of  slavery  as  is  possible  without  incurring  the  interference 
of  what  is  hated  here  above  all  things,  namely,  the  Freed- 
man's  Bureau,  or  Federal  troops. 

"  There  is  not  a  sentiment  expressed,  which  looks  to  a 
frank  acceptance  of  the  labor  situation,  which  the  war  has 
forced  upon  this  country  ;  not  a  syllable  which  shows  a 
disposition  to  take  thefreedman,  and  mold  and  fashion  him 
into  a  faithful  and  efficient  free  laborer. 

"  The  President's  j)Osition,  as  it  is  understood  here,  is  the 
severest  blow  which  could  have  been  administered  to  the 
South — severest,  because  it  is  encouraging  them  to  in- 
augurate a  resistance  to  the  Federal  government,  which 
they  would  otherwise  never  have  dreamed  of,  and  which, 
it  requires  no  prophecy  to  say,  future  events  will  not  justify. 

"  If  at  this  time  no  encouragement  were  held  out  to  the 


STEAMBOAT  AND  VICKSBURG  EXPERIENCES,  ETC.        127 

Southern  people  beyond  that  which  lies  in  a  faithful  dis- 
charge of  their  duty  as  good  citizens,  the  labor  problem 
would,  in  my  judgment,  have  an  easy  solution.  The 
Southern  people  are  unused  to  free  labor,  and  they  will  at 
best  manage  it  bungingly;  but  when,  added  to  their  ig- 
norance, is  an  utter  absence  of  good  intent,  a  generally  ex- 
pressed determination  to  institute  a  modified  form  of  slavery, 
which  shall,  as  it  were,  bridge  over  the  chasm  between  the 
old  slavery  and  that  new  form  which  is  to  be  inaugurated 
by  the  policy  of  the  President,  the  case  is  a  bad  one  in- 
deed. The  result  of  all  this  must  be  that  which  invariably 
follows  from  the  combination  of  ignorance  of  head  and 
badness  of  heart. 

"  Naturally,  the  negro  will  be  distrustful  of  his  former  mas- 
ter, just  as  that  master,  who  has  never  seen  the  negro  work 
otherwise  tharr  under  the  lash,  will  be  distrustful  of  his 
value  as  a  free  laborer.  It  is  thus  an  experiment  on  both 
sides — on  the  side  of  the  negro  as  to  whether  his  new  mas- 
ter, who  now  simply  owns  his  labor,  will  deal  fairly  by 
him,  paying  him  to  the  last  penny,  according  to  contract, 
sheltering  him  from  the  weather,  furnishing  him  medicine 
when  he  is  sick  :  in  short,  carrying  out  his  lightest  prom- 
ise ;  on  the  side  of  the  planter,  as  to  whether  the  negro 
will,  for  all  this,  render  faithful  service.  An  experiment 
which  can  not  be  successful,  without  mutual  fidelity  and 
perfect  good  faith.  Judging  from  the  element  with  which 
I  am  mingling,  there  seems  to  be  an  alarming  absence  of 
these  vital  prerequisites.  If  the  negroes,  on  their  part, 
are  meditating  one-half  the  badness  of  those  who  are  seek- 
ing their  services,  it  is  not  difficult  to  foretell  the  disastrous 
results  that  must  follow. 

"  Of  course,  there  is  lamentable  ignorance  on  both  sides. 
The  boor  of  to-day  can  not  become  the  dancing-master  of 
to-morrow.  But  if  good  intent  were  here,  every  thing  else 
would  follow.  Master  and  slave  would  be  lost  sight  of  in 
the  new  and  ennobling  relation  of  employer  and  employed. 


128  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

The  cloud  of  slavery  would,  in  truth  and  in  fact,  be  dis- 
pelled by  the  bright  sunshine  of  freedom,  and  peace  and 
prosperity  would  reign.  But  there  is  the  complete  absence 
of  good  intent  in  the  utterances  of  those  with  whom  I  am 
surrounded.     There  is  certainly  mischief  ahead. 

"As  yet,  I  have  seen  little  or  nothing  of  the  recently  en- 
franchised negro,  as  those  in  our  employ,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  a  woman  by  the  name  of  Clara,  and  one  or  two 
others,  have  alwaj^s  been  free,  so  I  can  make  no  analysis  of 
his  feelings.  But  it  is  terrible  to  contemplate,  that,  per- 
haps, while  his  late  master  is  thus  publicly  expressing 
the  sentiments  which  meet  my  ear  on  every  side,  and  of 
which  I  have  given  you  but  the  faintest  outline,  he,  too, 
may  be  plotting.  But  even  if  he  is  not,  if  there  is  no  bad- 
ness in  his  heart  now,  bad  faith,  on  the  part  of  the  em- 
ployer, will,  in  time,  beget  bad  faith  on  the  part  of  the 
emj^loyed. 

"You  know  the  best-constructed  machinery  often  works 
clumsily  at  the  start.  So,  in  the  new  compact  between  the 
late  master  and  the  late  slave,  for  the  cultivation  of  these 
Southern  lands,  there  will  be  short-comings.  Naturally, 
these  short-comings  will  be  on  the  side  of  the  late  slave,  as 
a  result  of  his  ignorance.  It  will  be  for  the  late  master, 
he  being  the  intelligent  member  of  the  partnership,  to  note 
these  short-comings,  and  he  should  direct  the  best  effort  of 
head  and  heart  to  their  correction,  seeing  to  it  that  no  fail- 
ure occurs  on  his  side  to  injure  the  gossamer  thread  of  con- 
fidence which,  at  the  first,  binds  his  late  chattel  to  him — by 
patience  and  fair  dealing,  adding  other  strands,  until,  in 
time,  it  grows  to  the  strength  of  a  cable-chain. 

"  Once  having  gained  the  confidence  of  thefreedmen,  the 
labor  problem  is  virtually  settled.  As  slaves,  they  proved 
themselves  successful  cotton-raisers ;  as  freedmen,  they 
still  possess  this  knowledge.  There  is  the  same  skill  in 
handling  the  plow  and  hoe,  in  the  drojojoing  of  the  seed,  in 
the  cultivation  of  the  plant,  as  before. 


STEAMBOAT    AND   VICKSBURG   EXPERIENCES,  ETC.        129 

"  The  only  real  difference  is,  that  now  the  planter  will 
have  to  employ  the  skill  which  he  formerly  owned.  The 
obstacle  in  the  way  of  this  employment  is,  the  natural 
feeling  of  distrust,  on  the  part  of  the  freedman,  as  to 
whether  the  planter  will  deal  honestly  with  him,  a  feeling 
which  will  be  overcome  only  by  actual  experience. 

"  In  the  nature  of  things, so  long  as  this  distrust  lurks  in 
the  bosom  of  the  freedman,  he  will  not  be  the  willing, 
efficient  worker  which  he  would  be  with  this  feeling  re- 
moved. Thus,  the  planter  has,  as  it  were,  his  reputation 
to  make— until  which  time  he  will  be  under  a  cloud,  and 
working  to  disadvantage. 

"  This  only  applies  to  the  former  slave-owner.  Those  of 
us  here  from  the  North  will  have  the  confidence  of  the  freed- 
men  from  the  start.  But,  as  an  offset  to  this,  we  w^ll  not 
have  the  old  planters'  knowledge  of  cotton-raising,  nor  his 
knowledge  of  negro  character,  so  essential  to  its  successful 
handling. 

"  But  I  am  very  sorry  to  have  to  write  you,  knowing  the 
deep  interest  you  take  in  passing  events  here,  that  there  is 
nothing  in  the  scenes  about  me  to  give  any  hope  that  the 
planters  are  studying  out  labor  problems,  other  than  those 
which  will  place  their  late  chattel  in  something  like  the  old 
bondage. 

'•  '  Our  slaves  have  been  wrested  from  us  ! '  they  loudly 
cry.  '  We  have  been  robbed  of  our  property  by  the  Yan- 
kee government ;  the  heel  of  the  tyrant  is  upon  our  necks. 
We  have  been  foully  wronged!'  and  so  on  for  quantity. 
All  day  long,  during  my  stay  in  Yicksburg,  and  on  my 
return  journey,  I  heard  nothing  but  such  expres.sions. 
During  my  entire  absence  I  did  not  hear  an  utterance  that 
indicated  an  acceptance  of  the  labor  situation.  Nothing 
that  looked  the  least  like  an  effort  to  take  it  and  make  the 
best  of  it. 

"  This  attitude  toward  their  late  slaves  astonishes  me,  as 
it  will  you,  no  doubt.     They  seem  to  hate  them  with  a  de- 


yj 


130  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

gree  second  only  to  that  of  their  hatred  of  the  government. 
Perhaps  it  is  because  the  government  has  taken  the  negroes 
under  its  protection  in  the  Freedman's  Eureau,  and,  therefore, 
in  striking  these  a  blow,  they  will  be  striking  that  govern- 
ment which  is  so  odious  to  them  in  every  way.  They  seem 
to  regard  the  negroes  as  personally  responsible  for  their 
freedom,  and  become  enraged  when  they  see  one  of  them  act 
as  if  he  felt  himself  to  be  free.  Occasionally  small  squads  of 
negro  soldiers  lounged  past  the  hotel,  with  their  military 
hats  perched  on  their  noses,  in  the  most  devil-may-care 
manner.  This  always  exasperated  the  planters ;  but  one 
day  a  couple  came  by  in  civilian's  dress,  with  their  hats 
perched  on  one  side,  when  hands  went  in  search  of  pistols, 
faces  became  wrathful,  and  teeth  were  ground.  I  almost 
looked  for  these  two  innocent  causes  of  their  anger  to  be 
shot  down.  I  am  certain  they  made  a  narrow  escape  of  it. 
Again,  they  are  filled  with  an  ecstacy  of  delight  if  a  for- 
mer slave  addresses  one  of  them  as  '  marsa.' 

''  The  attitude  of  the  President,  as  they  understand  it, 
and  as  I  have  before  written,  gives  them  hope  that  this 
freedom  is  but  temporary,  and  that  they  will  soon  have 
their  slaves  in  their  grasp  again.  So  there  is  no  disposi- 
tion to  deal  with  them  as  free  laborers. 

"  In  their  eyes,  the  negroes  are  lazy,  trifling,  thieving, 
and  unfit  to  live  a  day  without  a  master.  But  still  they 
must  have  them  to  cultivate  their  lands ;  and  how  to  get 
them,  and  how  to  hold  them — not  as  free  laborers,  but  in  a 
modified  form  of  slavery — is  their  constant  study. 

"  One  would  suppose  that  their  self-interest  might  tell 
them  that  in  order  to  retain  this  black  labor,  and  make  it 
efficient,  there  must  be  fair  dealing,  and  perhaps  but  for 
the  hopes  excited  in  their  bosoms  by  President  Johnson, 
they  would  so  feel  and  act.  But  expecting  great  things 
from  him  as  they  are,  confident  of  them,  they  seem  to  feel 
they  can  afford  to  drop  a  politic  course,  one  that  would  ul- 
timately lead  them  to  prosperity,  for  one  in  strict  accord 


A  SECOND  LETTER  ON  THE  SITUATION.  131 

with  their  bitter  feelings — but  one  which,  alas,  will  adminis- 
ter a  severe  blow  to  this  country.  Expecting,  as  they  all 
confidently  do  at  this  time,  that  they  will  soon  recover  all 
they  have  lost  by  the  war,  no  one  seems  to  care  to  hide  his 
feelings.  Their  hearts  are,  as  it  were,  pinned  to  their 
sleeves,  and  many  of  them  sj^out  around  the  hotel  until  they 
froth  at  the  mouth  like  mad." 


CHAPTEPv  XXIX. 

EXTRACT   FROM    A    SECOND    LETTER   ON   THE   SITUATION. 

*'  I  PRESUME  the  expressions  of  the  people  on  the  steam- 
boat and  in  Yicksburg  are  similar  to  those  heard  every- 
where in  the  South.  In  all  this  there  is  no  acceptance  of 
the  situation.  In  these  utterances  there  is  no  voice  which 
says  '  that  which  the  war  has  decided  is  final,  viz.  :  that 
our  slaves  are  forever  free ;  free,  it  is  true,  in  spite  of  our 
efforts  to  the  contrary  ;  still  none  the  less  free.  But  we 
have  the  same  need  for  them  to  cultivate  our  lands  which 
we  had  for  them  as  slaves  ;  and,  now  that  they  are  free, 
we  will  employ  them  and  pay  them  just  the  wages  we 
agree  to  pay  them.  We  will  adopt  as  our  motto — a  fair 
day's  wages  and  a  fair  day's  work.  And,  because  free 
labor  is  more  desirable  when  the  laborer  can  read  and 
write,  we  will  encourage  education.  "We  will  also  endeavor 
to  instill  principles  of  thrift  and  all  virtues,  setting  our 
faces  sternly  against  idleness,  thieving,  and  the  other  vices.' 
If  the  Southern  people  would  only  say  this,  and  not  only 
say  it,  but  act  it,  at  this  early  day,  when  this  new  form  of 
labor  lies  in  their  hands  a  plastic  mass,  how  much  of  suf- 
fering for  the  future  it  would  avert.  What  a  mountain  of 
distrust  between  employer  and  employed  would   be   re- 


132  A  YEAR  OF  WRECK. 

moved,  a  mountain,  soft  and  yielding,  which  would  melt 
away  under  the  benign  influences  of  fair  dealing  and  kind 
treatment,  but  which,  in  their  absence,  will  become  granite. 

"  It  is,  at  the  outstart  of  this  negro  labor,  once  slave,  now 
free,  where  cool  heads  and  calm,  sober  judgment  are  re- 
quired. All  passion  and  prejudice  should  be  buried  before 
approaching  it.  Ultimately,  of  course,  it  can  not  fail  of 
success,  but  much  depends  as  to  whether  it  shall  be  use- 
ful in  the  near  or  in  the  remote  future  upon  this,  its  first 
full  year's  operation. 

"  Evidently,  from  the  expressions  all  about  me,  as  indi- 
cated in  my  former  letter,  it  is  not  to  be  managed  by  cool 
heads.  There  is  to  be  no  sober  judgment  about  it.  Pas- 
sion and  prejudice  are  every-where  apparent.  Babes  or 
madmen  would  be  equally  fit  to  approach  the  solution 
of  this  problem — a  solution  which  is  either  to  make  this 
country  bud  and  blossom  now,  or  to  further  impoverish  it 
— as  those  who  are  now  storming  through  the  cabin  of  this 
steamboat,  and  are,  it  is  to  be  presumed,  since  the  same  in- 
fluences are  at  work  every-where  in  this  country,  an  index 
of  the  South.  It  is  sad  to  think  that  it  is  in  the  hands  of 
this  class.  It  seems  to  me  that  one  might  as  well  expect 
to  find  one's  pocket-book  after  it  has  been  lying  under  the 
eyes  of  a  gang  of  thieves,  as  to  expect  any  good  results  for 
labor  so  long  as  it  is  to  be  handled  by  this  untaught,  and 
apparently  unteachable,  element.  ]S"o,  my  dear  friend,  the 
solution  of  the  labor  question  of  the  South  is  in  bad  hands, 
and  I  predict  that  it  will  take  years  of  patient  effort  to 
bring  it  out  of  the  snarl  into  which  this  season  will  put  it. 
There  will  be  much  of  suffering  on  both  sides  in  the  mean- 
time. 

"  Oh,  how  much  dross  there  is  in  the  composition  of  the 
late  master,  and  perhaps  as  much,  though  of  a  different 
character,  in  that  of  the  late  slave,  which  will  have  to  be 
melted  out  in  the  crucible  of  time.  On  the  part  of  the  late 
master,  it  will  only  be  those  who  finally  accept  the  situa- 


A  SECOND  LETTER  ON  THE  SITUATION.  133 

tion,  acknowledging  frankly  that  the  negro  is  a  free  man, 
and  treat  him  accordingly,  who  will  achieve  success.  This 
acknowledgment  will  bo  the  forerunner,  as  it  were,  of  that 
success,  and  how  for  those  with  whom  I  am  mingling  seem 
from  any  such  acknowledgment  at  this  time  ! 

"  Fortunately  for  the  country,  the  fire  now  raging  in  the 
Southern  heart  is  not  an  unquenchable  one.  Sooner  or 
later  it  will  exhaust  itself.  But,  in  the  meantime,  what  a 
destructive  fire  it  is  likely  to  be  !  There  will  be  no  one  in 
this  country  who  will  not  be  scorched  by  it.  It  will,  more- 
over, stay  the  tide  of  immigration  and  capital  now  flowing 
Southward,  until  these  life-giving  influences  will  turn  away 
from  it  with  loathing  and  disgust.  Of  those  already  here 
from  the  North,  possessing  capital,  full  of  energy,  and  hav- 
ing an  honest  ambition  to  assist  in  building  up  the  coun- 
try— with  a  laudable  intent  to  enricli  ourselves,  but  in  so 
doing  to  enrich  the  waste  places — how  many  will  be  driven 
away  with  broken  or  ruined  fortunes,  to  tell  the  tale  in  the 
North  of  how  we  were  insulted,  fleeced,  and  abused  until 
we  could  endure  it  no  longer  ;  how  few  will  have  the  cour- 
age to  remain  until  this  raging,  consuming  fire  shall  have 
spent  itself. 

"  Of  course,  if  the  hatred  which  is  every-where  apparent 
towards  the  negro  and  the  Federal  government  should  ex- 
tend to  us,  it  will  know  no  bounds,  and  scores  will  be 
driven  away  within  the  year,  returning  to  the  North, 
whence  they  came,  where,  in  their  turn  blinded  by  pas- 
sion and  prejudice,  they  will  naturally  picture  the  state  of 
affairs  worse  than  it  is.  If  the  attack  on  us  comes  at  all, 
it  will  be  with  a  vengeance.  The  Southern  people  never 
do  things  half  way.  But  all  this  is  anticipating,  and  I 
only  started  out  to  tell  you  of  the  present.  '  Sufficient 
unto  the  day,'  etc. 

"  It  is  the  insane  hope  inspired  by  President  Johnson 
which  now  furnishes  fuel  to  that  fire  which  sank  down  at 
Appomattox  into  a  smoldering  heap.     He  it  is  who  is  fan- 


134  A   YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

ning  those  dying  embers  and  causing  the  fire  to  blaze  again 
all  over  the  South,  reddening  the  sky  with  its  unhealthy 
glow — a  fire  which  is  to  be  quite  as  delusive  as  the  first, 
and  this  time  disastrous  to  the  future  of  the  Southern 
country  as  that  first  fire  which  blazed  out  of  the  Sumter 
gun  was  disastrous  to  the  Southern  people,  in  taking  from 
them  their  slaves.  But  perhaps  this  second  fire  is  only  the 
natural  sequence  of  the  first. 

"  Our  constitution  says  '  all  men  are  free  and  equal,'  but 
that  was  an  untruth.  That  first  fire  made  it  a  truth,  but 
only  a  truth  in  letter  and  in  theory,  judging  from  the  utter- 
ances of  the  peo2)le  here.  Let  us  hope  that  this  second 
fire  will  establish  it  as  a  glowing  and  glorious  fact.  But 
before  it  is  so  established  there  will,  I  fear,  be  a  going 
down  into  the  valley  of  the  shadow  of  death  on  the  part 
of  many  of  us  here,  and  a  long  sojourn  there. 

"  When  the  first  fire  burned  down  at  the  general  surren- 
der of  the  Confederate  armies,  all  eyes,  you  know,  were 
turned  to  this  Southern  country.  Notably,  oflScers  and 
soldiers  of  our  armies  are  making  haste  to  find  a  home 
here.  The  war  opened  this  country  to  their  inspection, 
and  during  their  campaigns  some  attractive  spot  was 
marked  which,  should  their  lives  be  spared,  would  claim 
them  when  the  war  was  over.  It  is  well  known  that  these 
are  brave  men  and  true,  and  generally  the  cream  of  the  lo- 
cality which  they  are  leaving,  and  from  which,  since  the 
departure  of  a  good  citizen  is  always  a  loss,  they  can  not 
be  easily  spared. 

"  They  had,  as  Dobson  said,  assisted  in  conquering  the 
rebellion,  and  they  are  coming  now  as  soldiers  of  peace  to 
assist  in  building  the  country  anew.  1  do  not  believe  there 
is  one  of  them  coming  here  from  motives  of  political  am- 
bition. The  fact  is,  there  is  no  political  field  open  to 
Northern  men  here.  The  Southern  people  are  in  the  quiet 
possession  of  their  government,  and  for  aught  any  one  can 
now  tell,  are  likely  to  remain  so. 


A  SECOND  LETTER  ON  THE  SITUATION.  135 

"  This  immigration  comprises  men  coming  South  simply 
as  farmers,  on  the  strength  of  such  statements  as  that 
with  which  Dobson  captivated  nie  (and  which,  you  remem- 
ber, almost  persuaded  j'ou  to  break  up  and  come  also),  and 
under  the  impression  that  they  will  be  fairly  treated  in  the 
localities  where  they  shall  settle.  No  better  class  of  im- 
migrants ever  blessed  a  country  than  this  ;  they  are  cour- 
ageous, intelligent,  full  of  activity,  and  utterly  devoid  of 
any  bitterness  in  their  hearts  towards  the  South,  or  they 
would  not  think  of  locating  here.  They  form  also  a  most 
desirable  class  of  immigrants,  because  they  come  with 
capital. 

'^  Look  at  the  list  of  names  which  at  this  moment  occur 
to  me  among  those  already  here  :  Generals  Frank  Blair, 
A.  L.  Lee,  Francis  J.  Heron,  Willard  AYarner,  W.  B. 
Woods,  W.  L.  McMillen,  J.  H.  Sypher;  Colonels  Bis- 
sel,  John  Lynch,  P.  Jones  Yorke ;  Major  Edmonds ; 
Drs.  Franklin,  Barr,  and  Phel2:>s ;  Captains  Hiram  E. 
Steele,  Whitney,  Mathews,  Gould,  C.  D.  Benton,  Ed.  C. 
Manning,  J.  C.  Chittenden,  L.  B.  Ehodes,  James  Andrews; 
with  WhitelawEeid,  George  C.  Benham,  J.  O.  Pierce,  Samuel 
Galloway,  John  S.  and  A.  B.  Harris,  Thomas  Gaff,  Charles 
Howe.  Most  of  these  you  know  either  in  person  or  by 
reputation,  and  doubtless  this  little  group  is  only  a  fair 
sample  of  the  many  scattered  all  over  the  South. 

"  This  immigration  is,  so  to  speak,  a  venture  sent  out 
from  the  North  ;  the  advance-guard  of  a  host  which  is  to 
follow  if  these  fare  well.  Its  individual  ventures  are  like 
so  many  ships  dispatched  by  the  venturesome  merchant  to 
some  foreign  shore,  hitherto  unknown  to  commerce,  where 
promises  of  profit  are  good — to  be  followed  by  large  fleets 
if  these  promises  should  be  realized,  or  abandoned  if  they 
should  not  be. 

"It  is  the  harm  which  the  second  fire  I  have  mentioned 
will  do  to  these  first  ventures,  resulting,  as  it  naturally 
will,  in  stopping  the  further  flow  of  immigration  and  cap- 


136  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

ital,  which  will  be  most  disastrous  to  the  future  of  the 
country.  The  first  fire,  while  it  seemed  to  have  impover- 
ished the  people  by  taking  away  their  slaves,  ought  to 
benefit  the  country  by  opening  it  up  to  settlement,  and  so 
it  will,  but  for  this  second  fire,  invoked  by  the  South, 
which,  while  it  may  eventually  purify  the  peoj^le,  fitting 
them  to  receive  and  enjoy  the  blessings  of  a  free  labor 
system  at  some  future  day,  by  burning  away  all  the  preju- 
dices which  have  been  engendered  by  a  century  of  slavery, 
and  perhaps  establishing  for  a  distant  time  the  foundation 
for  a  broad  and  substantial  prosperity  for  this  country,  so 
rich  in  soil  and  climate  :  establishing  it,  not  from  any  wise 
management  or  good  sense  on  the  part  of  the  people,  but 
from  the  very  fact  that  the  fires  of  passion,  hatred,  and 
that  spirit  of  rebellion  against  what  is  inevitable  will  have 
burnt  out,  leaving  reason  and  common  sense  to  assume 
their  sway  ; — while  it  will,  perhaps,  do  all  this,  the  imme- 
diate efi'ect  will  be  to  prevent  even  the  impulse  to  immi- 
gration hither.  Thus  will  be  turned  back  a  life-giving 
stream,  which  is  now  flowing  naturally  into  the  country, 
whose  return  must  be  invoked  at  some  future  day,  when 
the  madness  and  insanity  of  the  people  shall  have  passed 
away  forever. 

"  It  is  perhaps  too  soon  to  form  a  correct  opinion  as  to 
how  this  stream  of  immigration  and  capital  now  flowing 
into  the  country  from  the  ]^orth  is  regarded  by  the  South- 
ern people.  I  do  not,  indeed,  believe  they  have  entirely 
made  up  their  minds  about  it  yet,  from  what  I  see  and 
hear.  We  seem  to  be  rather  objects  of  curiosity,  and  we 
are  also  distrusted.  Our  actions  to  them  are  strange  and 
peculiar. 

"  I  mention  the  following  stories  told  of  us,  which  will 
give  you  a  better  idea  of  how  we  are  regarded  than  any 
description  I  can  write  you  : 

"A  Yankee  new-comer,  who  had  landed  his  outfit  on  a 
wharf-boat,  took  off  his  coat  and  actually  turned  in  with 


J 


A  SECOND  LETTER  ON  TUE  SITUATION.  137 

the  '  nii^gers  '  and  '  helped  '  load  liia  freight  into  his,  wag- 
ons, rolling  his  boxes  and  barrels  up  the  bank  just  as  they 
did.  Then  he  straddled  the  lead-mule  in  one  of  the  teams, 
and  drove  off  to  his  plantation,  just  like  a  '  nigger.' 

"Another  had  been  seen  plowing  at  the  head  of  his  plow- 
gang  ! 

"Another  had  been  seen  to  drink  water  out  of  the  same 
gourd  the  '  niggers  '  used  ! 

"It  w^as  mentioned  that  they  all  brought  cookin'  stoves, 
wood-saws,  and  India-rubber  over-shoes  with  them  ! 

"A  blear-eyed,  vicious-looking  planter  told  how  one  of  the 
Yankees  had  started  a  Sunday-school  among  the  '  niggers  ' 
on  his  plantation,  which  he  seemed  to  consider  an  insult  to 
the  South.  Several  had  started  day-schools,  and  it  is  not 
an  uncommon  thing  to  see  the  Yankee  planters  actually 
teaching  the  '  niggers  '  at  night  themselves.  This  thing  of 
'  book-larnin'  'mong  niggers  '  is  generally  hooted  at.  Sev- 
eral of  the  planters  reckoned  it  would  be  a  good  thing  to 
get  one  of  these  Yankees  for  a  '  pardner,'  the  '  niggers  are 
so  fond  of  'em.'  '  We  have  the  land,'  they  say,  '  and  know 
how  to  make  cotton  ;  the  Yankees  can  furnish  the  nio-irers 
and  the  money.'  Almost  every  one  knew  of  cases  in  his 
neighborhood  where  these  '  pardnerships  '  had  been  started, 
and  it  '  'jDcared  to  be  workin'  well.'  It  seemed  to  be  re- 
garded as  a  great  triumph  to  get  a  good  trade  out  of  the 
'  Yankees.'  The  case  was  mentioned  where  one  of  them 
had  contracted  to  pay  twenty-five  dollars  an  acre  rent  for  a 
single  year.  And  then  some  one  told  how  Hampson  had 
sold  a  plantation  to  a  G-eneral  Dobson  for  seventy-five 
dollars  an  acre — (I  should  have  said  before  this  that  I 
did  n't  know  a  soul  on  the  boat,  and  if  any  one  noticed  me 
at  all,  it  was  most  probably  to  take  me  for  a  Southerner, 
for  my  exposure  had  bronzed  my  features,  so  their  conver- 
sations were  conducted  without  restraint)  :  these  were  re- 
garded as  splendid  operations,  and  all  were  agreed  that  the 


138  A    YEAR    OF   WRECK. 

Yankees  bad  been  '  salivated  '  in  these  instances  '  for  a 
fact,'  and  there  was  unmistakably  much  glee  at  the  thought. 
Ten  to  fifteen  dollars  an  acre  was  said  to  be  the  usual  price 
the  '  Yankees  '  were  paying  as  rent  for  their  land,  and  they 
were  generally  renting.  There  was  only  here  and  there 
an  instance  where  they  had  purchased.  The  general  idea 
is  that  the  'Yankees  '  are  strongly  inclined  to  do  a  great 
deal  of  work  themselves,  and  there  is  much  turning  up  of 
the  nose  at  this.  It  might  do  in  their  country,  they  said, 
but  it  will  never  do  down  here  among  the  '  niggers.'  It 
will  be  setting  them  a  bad  example.  Evidently  they  re- 
gard labor  as  degrading. 

"Nearly  every  'Yankee'  has  some  new  labor-saving 
machinery,  they  say — now  it  is  a  prairie  or  sub-soil  plow, 
now  it  is  a  cotton-planter — something  that  will  open  the 
place  for  the  seed,  as  well  as  drop  it  and  cover  it :  all  done 
by  one  man  and  one  mule,  thus  accomplishing  the  work 
formerly  done  by  two  mules  and  three  men  ;  now  it  is  a 
cotton-cultivator,  similar  to  that  with  which  corn  is  culti- 
vated in  the  West ;  and  now  it  is  a  steel-plow  instead  of 
one  of  wrought-iron.  They  generally  bring  sewing-ma- 
chines and  hay-cutters,  which  last  is  considered  a  good  joke 
in  view  of  the  fact  that  roughness  for  teams  is  usually 
corn-fodder.  Great  is  the  sport  made  over  these  innova- 
tions on  the  old-time  ways  and  the  old-time  instruments 
used  in  cotton-raising. 

"  May  be  these  '  Yankees  '  can  find  something  better  than 
the  Calhoun  plow,  they  say,  or  the  old  way  of  planting  and 
cultivating  cotton,  but  they  reckon  not ;  they  reckon  they 
will  get  tired  enough  of  these  new-fangled  instruments. 
They  reckon  they  knew  pretty  well  how  to  raise  cotton 
'  'fore  the  wa'  ;'  may  be  not,  but  from  the  crops  they  raised 
they  think  they  did,  and  they  reckon  the  Yankees  will 
think  so  themselves  'fore  the  season  is  over. 

"  There  is  evidently  a  disposition  to  chuckle  when  they 


A    SECOND    LETTER   ON   THE   SITUATION.  139 

think  they  sec  the  '  Yankees  '  making  mistakes,  and  it 
seems  to  be  quite  the  thing  to  squeeze  as  much  money 
out  of  them  as  possible,  without  any  thought  as  to  whether 
they  are  giving  value  in  return.  There  is  nothing  said 
about  giving  encouragement  to  the  new-comer.  There 
is  no  discussion  over  immigration  schemes.  There  does  not 
seem  to  be  the  least  idea  that  this  is  a  tide  which  they 
should  encourage,  or  that  good  results  will  come  of  it — 
if  there  is  any  question  about  it,  it  is  the  question  of  letting 
the  '  Yankees  '  come  !  They  are  flocking  down  here,  and 
either  buying  or  leasing  Southern  lands.  It  might  or  it 
might  not  be  a  good  thing  to  let  them.  Of  course,  when 
they  could  be  '  made '  to  think  as  they  did,  it  was  all  right. 
But  they  found  most  of  them  would  have  ideas  of  their 
own,  which  they  might  express,  or,  worse,  they  might  seek 
to  enforce  them  upon  communities  where  they  were  lo- 
cated. Some  might  refuse  to  go  into  their  projected  com- 
binations to  control  the  '  niggers.'  These  refractory  ones 
must  be  '  forced  '  into  line.  If  this  '  Yankee  '  immigration 
meant  diversity  of  opinion,  then  it  was  a  'pest,'  and 
must  be  gotten  rid  of  One  sentiment,  one  thought,  one 
idea  only  could  be  tolerated.  This  had  been  the  way  '  'fore 
the  wa','  and  this  must  be  the  way  now.  It  was  only  the 
few  leading  men  in  each  community  that  knew  what  was 
best  to  do.  This  had  been  the  rule  in  slavery  times,  and 
this  must  still  be  the  rule. 

"  It  seems  to  be  generally  understood  that  the  '  Yankees' 
who  are  coming  here  would  have  to  hate  the  government, 
the  '  nigger,'  and  the  '  radical  '  party,  as  much  as  they  did, 
in  order  to  get  along  peaceably.  That  was  always  the 
case,  they  said,  when  Yankees  came  down  here  '  'fore  the 
wa','  and  several  instances  were  given  where  the  new- 
comers were  doing  so  now,  having  declared  that  '  we  uns  ' 
had  done  perfectly  right  in  fighting,  and  that  the  Yankee 
government  had  done  very  wrong  in  '  stopping  us,  and  de- 
stroying our  property  ;'  and  these  were  pronounced  splendid 


140  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

fellows.  If  all  the  '  Yankee  '  immigrants  were  like  these, 
there  would  be  no  trouble. 

"  To  sum  it  all  up,  Ave  are  objects  of  curiosity — our  com- 
ing is  a  novelty.  AVe  will  be  first  rate  to  '  tote'  labor  to 
them,  and  furnish  money.  We  all  have  plethoric  pocket- 
books,  and  whether  we  get  value  received  for  our  money 
or  not  is  a  matter  of  very  little  consequence  to  them,  so 
they  get  it.  We  are  inclined  to  bowl  ahead  at  a  i^retty  lively 
pace,  and  to  do  a  gooddeal  of  work  ourselves.  This  will  de- 
moralize the  '  niggers,'  and  is  bad.  But  they  can  probably 
'tolerate'  this,  if  we  will  only  have  no  opinions  of  our 
own.  generally  speaking,  and,  above  all,  we  must  hate  the 
free  '  nigger  '  and  the  '  Yankee  '  government.  Such  is  the 
substance  of  the  coarse  criticisms  I  hear  on  all  sides. 

"  This  hatred  of  the  government  is  something  awful,  and 
the  constant  din  againstit  is  exceedingly  annoying.  I  should 
as  soon  spend  my  time  in  a  boiler-foundry,  or  stand  along- 
side during  minute-shooting,  with  a  hundred-pound  Parrot- 
gun,  as  far  as  comfort  is  concerned.  It  seems  to  be  a  sub- 
ject of  which  these  people  never  tire.  From  morning  till 
night,  and  late  into  the  night,  whisky-drinking,  card-play- 
ing, and  cursing  the  government  are  kept  up.  As  often  as 
a  joke  is  cracked,  or  what  they  consider  to  be  a  good  thing 
said,  just  so  often  every  one  is  invited  to  take  a  drink;  and 
frequently,  when  coarse  jokes  and  dull  points  are  scarce,  this 
invitation  goes  around  between  times.  Always  before 
breakfast  and  dinner  comes  the  appetizer,  in  the  shape  of  a 
cock-tail,  and  on  a  moderate-sized  steamboat  like  ours, 
with  perhaps  two  hundred  passengers,  enough  '  night-caps  ' 
are  taken  to  supply  each  room  of  the.  largest  hotel  in  the 
country.  I  do  n't  know  just  what  they  get  when  they  call 
for  a  '  night-cap,'  but  from  its  appearance  suppose  it  to 
be  the  same  as  the  before-breakfast  and  before-dinner 
drink. 

'-  Wherever  I  went  on  the  boat,  and  in  Yicksburg,  there 
were  still  the  same  loose,  loud-mouthed  tirades  against  what 


V 


A   SECOND   LETTER   ON   THE   SITUATION.  141 

they  term  '  radical '  rule  in  the  country.  If  a  Eip  Yan 
Winkle  should  suddenl}^  appear  on  the-  scene,  after  his 
years  of  sleep,  he  would  suppose,  from  the  constant  utter- 
ances, that  he  was  among  a  peoi:)le  who  had  always  re- 
garded the  constitution  of  their  country  with  veneration. 
'  The  constitution  is  being  violated  !  '  '  The  constitution 
is  being  trampled  in  the  dust !  *  '  Such  conduct  is  uncon- 
stitutional ! '  '  The  radical  tyrants  of  the  North  are  disre- 
garding the  sacred  principles  of  the  constitution  !  '  and  so 
on  for  quantity. 

"  How  singular  this  all  seems.  You  know,  in  jour  sec- 
tion of  the  country  the  few  are  politicians;  but  here,  the 
thing  is  reversed.  Here  is  a  country  of  farmers,  and  yet, 
everyone  of  them  is  a  politician  !  They  tell  you  just  when, 
and  where,  and  how  the  government  has  violated  its  every 
pledge.  Kot  being  a  Eip  Yan  Winkle,  this  sort  of  talk  im- 
presses me  as  a  little  singular,  coming,  as  it  does,  from 
a  people  just  emerged  from  a  bloody  war,  which  they  in- 
augurated, the  direct  object  of  which  was  to  overthrow 
that  constitution,  and  destroy  that  government.  Don't 
you  agree  with  me,  that  it  is  in  bad  taste  for  those  people  to 
vilify  the  government  which  has  only  so  recently  extended 
to  them  the  hand  ,of  pardon  ?  Instances  are  mentioned 
where  their  leaders  fled  the  country  after  the  surrender,  but 
learning  that  the  government  was  not  arresting  any  body, 
they  had  returned,  and  their  property  had  been  restored 
to  them,  and  yet,  there  is  nothing  said  of  magnanimity  on 
the  part  of  the  Nation.  On  the  contrary,  this  sort  of 
thing  is  falling  upon  most  unthankful  soil.  I  verily  be- 
lieve this  magnanimity  is  being  mistaken  for  cowardice ; 
in  fact,  they  say  '  we  want  our  leaders  among  us,  just  as 
we  always  had  them,  and  the  Yankee  government  had  bet- 
ter not  put  any  thing  in  the  way! ' 

"  Is  n't  it  just  possible  that  a  little  iron  rule  would  be  a 
good  thing  down  here  now?  just  enough  to  compel  strict 
obedience  to  the  acts  of  Congress,  which  to-day,  it  seems 


142  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

to  me,  is  endeavoring  to  temper  justice  with  mercy  ;  but  its 
measures  are  being  thwarted  by  the  unfortunate  and  unex- 
pected attitude  of  the  chief  executive. 

"  A  stranger  here  would  suppose  that  there  was  n't  the 
least  vestige  of  wrong  clinging  to  the  garments  of  these 
people,  that  all  of  wrong  was  on  the  side  of  the  Kation, 
*  which  is  now  oppressing  them,'  as  they  say.  They  declare, 
in  specific  language,  that  they  '  are  a  greatly  wronged  and 
much  abused  people.'  A\^ell,  it  is,  perhaps,  charity  to  say 
that  they  have  shouted  this  story  so  loud  and  so  continu- 
ously, that  they  have  actually  come  to  believe  it  them- 
selves ! 

"  They  are  certainly  very  much  in  earnest  in  their  denun- 
ciations of  the  'Yankee'  government.  What  a  change  this 
is  from  the  Appomattox  feeling  !  Said  an  acquaintance  I 
met  in  Yicksburg  :  '  When  I  traveled  from  the  Ohio  to 
the  Eio  Grande  last  year,  I  thought  this  people  the  most 
humble  j^eople  upon  the  face  of  the  earth  ;  but  judging 
from  their  behavior  now,  that  humbleness  must  have  been 
a  good  deal  after  the  style  of  Uriah  Heap.  Then  they 
confessed  themselves  willing  to  do  any  thing  and  every 
thing  to  appease  the  government,  but  now  I  find  the  great 
majority  but  little  less  impudent  than  they  were  in  the 
winters  of  1860  and  1861.  TJjDon  every  street-corner,  upon 
steamboats,  upon  railroads,  and  in  stage  coaches,  you  hear 
the  expressions  d — n  Yankees,  d — n  the  government,  and 
others  similar.  Coming  from  ISTew  Orleans  to  this  point 
in  the  cabin,  some  one  remarked  that  the  captain  of  our 
steamer  had  been  in  the  Federal  army.  A  man  that  I  had 
before  taken  to  be  a  perfect  gentleman,  flushing  up  and 
looking  as  near  like  the  devil  as  I  think  it  possible  for  a 
human  being  to  do,  said  :  '  If  I  had  known  that,  I  would 
have  seen  the  d — n  villian  in  h — 1  before  I  had  taken  nas- 
sage  on  his  steamer  !  '  'So  would  I !  '  'So  would  I ! ' 
came  from  all  sides  ;  and,  notwithstanding  the  vulgarity  of 
his  language,  this  stranger  immediately  became  a  general 


A   SECOND    LETTER   ON   THE   SITUATION.  I4d 

favorite  among  the  ladies.  '  Hatred  to  the  government,  its 
supporters,  and  its  flag  is  taught  in  its  churches,  Sunday- 
schools,  and  colleges,'  said  he;  '  mothers  instil  it  into  their 
children  so  soon  as  they  can  tell  what  a  blue  coat  and  brass 
buttons  mean  !  '     And  indeed  it  seems  so. 

"  Great  enthusiasm  was  created  on  our  steamboat  over  an 
editorial  from  one  of  the  Southern  papers,  which  I  man- 
aged to  copy  as  follows  : 

"'AH  the  Southern  papers  arc  jubilant  over  the  defeat 
of  the  Freedman's  Bureau  bill.  Since  the  morning  of  July 
22,  '61 — when  news  of  the  great  Southern  victory,  achieved 
b}^  Beauregard  over  McDowell,  and  the  awful  rout  of  the 
Federal  army  on  the  plains  of  Manassas,  was  borne  through 
the  South  on  the  wings  of  the  wind,  as  it  were,  carrying 
joy  and  jubilation  into  every  loyal  Southern  household, 
gladdening  every  true  Southern  heart — there  has  been  no 
news  received  with  so  much  rejoicing  by  the  people  of  the 
South,  as  that  informing  them  that  the  President  had 
vetoed  the  Freedman's  Bureau  bill.  This  is  the  greatest 
victory  they  have  achieved  during  the  war,  greater  than  any 
feats  of  arms  of  Stonewall  Jackson  or  Eobert  E.  Lee,  and 
has  given  them  more  pleasure  than  had  General  Lee  been 
elected  governor  of  Virginia.  They  have  found  an  ally 
in  President  Johnson  worth  more  to  them  than  the  alliance 
of  France  or  England,  and  they  now  rejoice  to  see,  even  as 
they  saw  foreshadowed  at  Manassas,  the  final  triumph  of 
the  Southern  cause.  The  Kepublicans  have  been  ignomin- 
iously  defeated  and  driven  from  the  field,  and  nothing  can 
save  them  from  total  annihilation.  All  that  is  necessary 
for  the  South  to  do,  is  to  continue  to  hold  up  the  Presi- 
dent's hands.  The  stone  which  the  builders  rejected  has 
become  the  head  of  the  corner,  and  Andrew  Johnson  is 
enshrined  in  every  loyal  Southern  heart.  They  will  accept 
no  terms  from  the  radicals.  They  ask  for  none  and  expect 
none.  The  fanatics  may  roar  and  hiss,  but  their  claws  arc 
cut,  and  their  fangs  are  harmless.     The  watchword  must 


144  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

henceforth  be,  "  Johnson  and  victory  !  "  and,  although  the 
odds  are  four  to  one  against  them,  did  they  not  carry 
on  a  four-years'  open  war  in  the  field  successfully,  against 
still  greater  odds  ?  A  fig  for  your  Rei:)ublican  Congress  ! 
We  have  a  President  with  absolute  powers,  who  can  carry 
on  a  government  good  enough  for  this  section  without  the 
assistance  of  Congress.'  " 

"It  does  not  matter  that  the  Congress  which  the  Southern 
people  did  n't  care  'a  fig  '  for  had  already  passed  the  Freed- 
man's  Bureau  bill  over  the  President's  veto  (though  that 
side  of  the  picture  will  not  likely  be  written  up  ;  it  is  only 
what  the  people  should  hear,  according  to  the  opinions  of 
the  leaders,  which  they  are  allowed  to  hear),  it  is  still  a 
glorious  event,  and  this  editorial  had  to  be  read  over,  slob- 
bered over,  and  drank  over  scores  of  times,  to  squads  of 
delighted  and  enthusiastic  listeners. 

"  It  does  not  matter  that  such  draughts  as  the  above  are 
deadly  poison  to  all  the  best  interests  of  this  country.  It 
is  pleasant  to  the  taste,  and  they  quaff  the  cup  to  its  dregs. 
This  is  the  food  the  Southern  people  are  being  fed  on 
at  this  time.  These  frothy  utterances  are  victuals,  drink, 
clothing,  warmth,  and  sunlight  to  them.  Is  it  any  wonder 
they  are  growing  belligerent  in  their  feelings  ?  Is  it  any 
wonder  they  are  growing  troublesome  ? — that  disorder  and 
outrages  are  increasing?  I  am  not  at  all  surj^rised  at  the 
wide-spread  alarm  existing  among  the  negroes  in  Yicks- 
burg.  Indeed,  it  is  rather  a  matter  of  surprise  that  any  of 
them  can  be  induced  to  go  to  the  country  with  strangers, 
in  view  of  the  dark  and  uncertain  future  before  them. 

"  The  enemies  of  the  country  have  circulated  the  report 
that  government  protection  in  the  South  is  to  be  with- 
drawn, by  order  of  the  President,  and  there  are  many 
negroes,  I  understand,  strongly  inclined  to  leave  the  South- 
ern States  entirely.  I  do  not  doubt  that  many  of  them, 
and  that  the  most  intelligent  of  them,  will  actually  carry 


FURTHER   ON    THE   SITUATION.  145 

this  threat  into  execution.     Perhaps  it  would  be  better  for 
most  of  them  to  do  it." 


CHAPTEE  XXX. 

FURTHER   ON   THE   SITUATION. 

In  reply  to  a  letter  written  to  me  by  a  friend  in  the 
North,  referring  to  the  effect  of  a  speech  made  by  Presi- 
dent Andrew  Johnson,  at  the  "White-House,  in  AVashing- 
ton,  February  22,  1867 — a  speech  which  gave  great  assur- 
ance to  the  still  rebellious  element  of  the  South,  and  which 
my  correspondent  characterized  as  an  ugly  stone  cast  into 
the  National  pond,  creating  a  great  splash — I  wrote  as  fol- 
lows : 

"  It  is  this  and  other  stones,  which  the  same  hand  is  cast- 
ing into  the  National  pool,  which  is  giving  new  courage  to 
the  disloyal  element  of  this  section,  which  will  render  it 
necessary  to  fight  the  war  over  again,  as  it  were,  through 
the  building-up  process  which  lies  before  us  ;  or,  perhaps, 
I  might  more  properly  say,  the  tearing-down  process.  The 
building-up  process  may  be  in  the  distant  future  ;  I  should 
say  it  is,  from  the  outlook  just  now.  We  must  have  a 
foundation  before  we  can  rear  the  superstructure,  and  1 
think  that  is  yet  to  be  laid. 

"  There  is  one  reason  which  prevents  the  hearts  of  the 
Southern  people  from  being  completely  fired  over  the  en- 
couragement they  are  receiving  from  Washington,  and,  as 
they  firmly  believe,  from  the  reaction  in  the  North  in  their 
favor.  That  reason  is,  that  they  have  already  taken  unto 
themselves  an  idol.  That  idol  is  money.  Yes,  the  greed 
of  mammon  is  now  serving  as  a  break-water  to  their  rekin- 


J 


146  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

died  passion  against  the  government.  In  the  light  of  their 
love  of  money,  hatred  to  the  government,  beyond  such 
loud-mouthed  utterances  as  you  hear  on  Southern  steam- 
boats, in  Southern  cities,  and,  no  doubt,  generally  through 
the  South,  and  which  are,  of  course,  very  annoying  to  listen 
to,  is  of  small  consequence. 

"  This  first  idol  must  be  appeased,  before  the  second 
shall  assume  mastery ;  and  this  first  idol  is  to  be  satisfied 
they  think,  through  the  production  of  cotton.  A  bounti- 
ful harvest  of  money  is  to  spring  from  this  fleecy  staple. 
The  same  mania  which  is  driving  thousands  of  people  and 
millions  of  money  here  from  the  ]N"orth,  is  absorbing  the 
Southern  people  also.  In  the  light  of  this  mania,  their 
angry  feeling  against  the  government  may  be  said  to  be 
more  a  pastime  than  a  steady  purpose.  It  is  also  mellow- 
ing the  sentiment  toward  us  new-comers.  You  know  the 
pursuit  of  money  is  always  softening — it  is  its  possession 
which  hardens  one — because  Ave  are  striving  for  a  common 
goal,  one  which  is  to  be  reached,  if  at  all,  by  a  journey 
along  a  common  road.  There  is  a  kindred  interest,  and, 
therefore,  a  kindred  feeling  naturally  springs  up.  This  is 
serving  its  purpose  in  breaking  the  force  of  the  waves  of 
prejudice  and  passion  against  the  negro  and  the  new-comer, 
keeping  what  would  otherwise  be  uncontrollable  within 
such  bounds  as  save  us  from  present  personal  violence,  be- 
cause, however  much  they  may  rail  against  the  negro,  how- 
ever much  they  may  spout  their  unholy  pur2:)0ses,  they 
know  that  he,  by  his  labor,  is  to  be  the  instrument  in  their 
hands  to  gratify  their  avarice,  if  it  is  to  be  gratified. 

"  Land,  Labor,  and  Lucre  is  what  they  want,  and  all 
they  want,  say  they,  to  realize  their  dream  of  wealth. 
Land  they  have ;  and  while  few  will  be  able  to  get  a  full 
supply  of  labor,  there  will  be  none  who  will  not  be  success- 
ful, either  to  a  greater  or  less  degree,  in  securing  it.  As  for 
lucre,  most  of  the  people  have  a  little  of  that  hoarded  in 
one  way  and  another,  but  principally  saved  from  the  wreck 


FURTHER   ON   THE   SITUATION.  147 

of  cotton-burning  insanity,  which  you  know  raged  in  the 
South  during  the  war.  Those  who  have  not  any  money  of 
their  own,  can  borrow  all  they  want  from  New  Orleans, — 
as  none  were  more  promptly  on  the  ground,  after  the  sur- 
render, than  the  Kew  Orleans  cotton-factors,  largely  rein- 
forced with  sums  of  money  running  up  into  the  millions, — 
and  new  firms,  from  the  North,  ready  to  loan  to  any  impe- 
cunious cotton-planter  Avho  may  choose  to  apply. 

"  The  production  of  cotton  at  present  prices,  is  thought 
to  be  immensely  profitaWe.  We  are  supposed  to  be  inhab- 
iting a  second  California,  and  colossal  fortunes  are  in  the 
near  future  for  all  of  ns.  Statements  like  Dobson's  are  in 
the  hands  of  every  cotton-votary,  and  quotations  from  them 
fall  upon  your  car  from  all  quarters.  This  year  is  confi- 
dently looked  forward  to  as  one  which  will  realize  a  boun- 
tiful harvest.  The  land  has  rested  for  the  most  part  dur- 
imr  the  w^ar,  and  has  enriched  itself  in  consequence.     The 

CD  ' 

enormous  vegetable  growth  which  annually  rotted  on  the 
ground,  was  so  much  fertilizing  material.  Thus  enriched, 
the  yield  can  not  be  otherwise  than  large. 

''  The  dreaded  army -worm  made  its  visit  last  year,  and, 
judging  from  the  past,  is  not  likely  to  come  again  for  sev- 
eral years.     So  there  is  little  or  no  danger  from  it. 

"  Aside  from  the  love  of  money  inherent  in  the  human 
breast,  the  Southern  people  feel  desperately  poor.  They 
say  they  want  money  for  the  actual  necessities  of  life. 
They  think  they  have  been  impoverished  by  the  war,  and 
that  they  must  put  forth  a  great  effort  to  regain  what  they 
call  their  former  wealth.  Do  you  know  this  boasted  wealth 
was  the  merest  sham?  That  the  monej^  they  spent  was 
in  many  cases  not  theirs,  but  borrowed  ?  True,  it  was  a 
something,  this  unlimited  credit  of  theirs,  which  gave  them 
all  they  wanted  to  spend,  and  this  was  wealth  in  their  eyes, 
even  though  it  wag  the  wealth  that  came  from  killing  the 
goose,  etc.  The  fact  is,  when  the  war  came  on,  there  was 
scarcely  a  planter  in  the  country  free  from  debt,  and  per- 


148  A    YEAR    OF    WRECK. 

baps  a  majority  may  be  said  to  bavc  been  bopelessly  in- 
volved. Tbey  bad  tlie  title  to  large  quantities  of  land,  and 
on  tbese  lands  were  many  slaves,  but  tbey  were  eitber 
mortgaged  for  part  payment  for  casb,  or  for  tbe  purpose 
of  borrowing  money  to  buy  more  slaves,  or  to  carr}'-  on 
tbeir  reckless  extravagances  in  living — tbeir  gambling  and 
drinking  debts,  etc.  So  mucb  was  this  the  case  that  New 
Orleans  alone  held  twenty  million  dollars'  worth  of  mort- 
gages against  the  lands  and  slaves  of  the  planters  in  the 
Mississij^pi  valley!  What  a  singular  law  it  was  that 
allowed  them  to  mortgage  their  slaves,  chattels,  just 
as  they  did  their  lands  !  This  volume  of  indebtedness, 
instead  of  decreasing  from  year  to  j^ear,  was  annually  on 
the  increase,  so  that  it  is  perhaps  true,  as  has  been  stated, 
that  the  war  simply  precipitated  the  crisis  which  sooner  or 
later  would  surely  have  come.  The  above  points  I  gath- 
ered in  Vicksburg  from  a  foreign  banker,  who  was  the 
power  behind  the  throne — that  is,  he  was  one  of  those  who 
loaned  the  JS'ew  Orleans  cotton  factors  money  to  loan  to  the 
planters,  and  knew  perfectly  well  that  whicb  he  affirmed. 
He  was  a  great  sufferer  from  his  financial  operations  in 
the  South  ;  said  he  had  come  over  to  see  for  himself  just 
how  mucb  he  was  injured  by  bis  money  investments  here. 
He  told  me  the  cotton  factors  in  I^ew  Orleans  knew  per- 
fectly well  that  they  owned  the  planters  before  the  war ; 
that  they  were  in  the  habit  of  boasting  of  it  at  their  pri- 
vate club-dinners.  Said  he,  the  planters  paid  in  one  way 
and  another,  twenty-five  per  cent,  for  the  money  they  bor- 
rowed, and  there  is  no  business  in  the  world  that  will  stand 
such  a  tariff.  Only  think  of  it,  be  continued,  one  bale  in 
every  four  went  for  interest  and  commissions,  and  the 
Southern  peoj^le  never  realized  that  this  sort  of  improvi- 
dence was  ruining  them.  They  thought  they  were  rich, 
because  whenever  they  drew  a  check  on  Xew  Orleans  it 
was  bonored,  and  never  stopped  to  think  whether  they  had 
any  money  to  their  credit,  and  if  you  could  get  a  glimpse 


FURTHER   ON   THE   SITUATION.  149 

at  tho  books  of  the  cotton  factors,  and  could  see  their  cords 
of  notes,  you   would  understand  that   only  a  very  small 
percentage   of  them  ever  did   have   any  money  to  their 
credit.     There  are  but  few  men  who  would  not  ruin  them- 
selves financially  in  the  course  of  time,  if  you  give  them 
unlimited  credit.     That  is  what  the  people  of  this  valley 
had,  and  if  there  ever  was  a  people  traveling  rapidly  the 
broad  road  to  financial  ruin,  it  was  this  people.     In  the 
border  slave  states,  the  producers  were  piling  up  wealth  by 
annually  selling  off  their  surplus  slaves  and  mules  to  the 
planters  in  this  country,  and  by  this  means,  and  by  their 
wasteful  extravagance,  the  planters  here  were  piling  up 
debts.     Thus  it  was  that  while  there  existed  a  substantial 
prosperity  in  the  border  states,  in  this  country  there  was 
only  the  outward  semblance  of  wealth.     True  it  is,  he  said, 
you  talk  with  the  planters  here  in  this  strain,  and  they  will 
tell  you  that  the  debts  of  the  Southern  people  were  incur- 
red for  plantations,  slaves,  and  mules,  all  of  which  were 
legitimate  investments,  and  that  there  was  no  one  in  the 
country  so  much  involved,  but  that  three  crop-years,  with 
prudence,  would  put  him  out  of  debt ;  but  right  there,  he 
said,  was  the  rub— the  crop-years  would  come,  but  the  pru- 
dence never  showed  itself,  and  so  it  was  that  the  strange 
and  unnatural  spectacle  presented  itself,  of  a  people  with 
unlimited  means,  and  who  were  yet  a  parcel  of  bankrupts. 
You  know,  he  said,  it  is  frequently  the  case  that  a  mer- 
chant, who  may  be  doing  a  large  and  apparently  profitable 
business,  is  yet   on   the   high   road   to   bankruptcy.     His 
bankers  are  perfectly  aware  of  it,  but  they  say  to  them- 
selves :  '  This  man  can  swim  for  one,  two,  or  three  years, 
as  the  case  may  be.     In  the  mean  time,  we  can,  his  neces- 
sities requiring  it,  loan  him  money  at  a  high  rate  of  inter- 
est, and  thus  he  is  one  of  our  most  profitable  customers.' 
But  when  the  banker  sees  that  his  man  has  gone  to  the 
end  of  his  string,  he  shuts  down  upon  him,   collects  his 
notes  and  the  man  is  snuffed  out  financially.     This  was 


150 


(#?,...„..    * 


just  tbe  situation  of  the  Southern  people,  and  the  foreign 
capitalists,  who  were  making  handsome  j^rofits  out  of  their 
money  in  Kew  Orleans,  knew  it  was  only  a  question  of 
time  when  we  would  have  to  shut  down,  and  so  did  the 
cotton  factors  there,  who  were  using  our  money  in  part, 
and  in  j^art  theirs.  But  the  war  coming  on  brought  every 
thing  up  with  a  round  turn. 

"  I  do  not  deny,  this  man  said,  that  there  were  planters 
in  this  country,  whose  manner  of  doing  business  was  so 
loose,  and  whose  modes  of  life  were  so  extravagant,  and 
who  were  so  profligate  in  every  way,  that  if  the  cotton 
factors  in  New  Orleans  could  have  gotten  their  names  off 
their  books,  that  is,  could  have  gotten  what  this  class  owed 
them,  they  would  have  been  denied  future  credits.  But 
there  was  the  trouble  ; — these  '  sick  '  accounts  were  carried 
from  year  to  year,  in  the  vain  hope  that  bye-and-bye  the 
indebtedness  would  be  lessened.  If  these  names  should 
be  stricken  from  the  books,  it  would  involve  a  total  loss, 
and,  perhaps,  by  letting  them  have  a  few  more  thousands 
the  thousands  already  out  could  be  collected.  And  so 
these  profligates  went  on  from  year  to  j^ear,  getting  deeper 
and  deej^er  in  debt,  becoming  more  hopelessly  involved, 
and  the  factors  paid  their  checks,  which  were  daily  pre- 
sented, with  wry  faces.  Of  course,  he  said,  these  fellows 
could  be  closed  out,  that  is  their  lands  and  negroes  sold, 
but  they  were  frequently  the  representative  men  of  the 
community  where  they  lived  ;  they  considered  themselves 
honorable,  high-toned,  and  solvent,  and  would  have  been 
highly  indignant  had  summary  steps  been  taken  against 
them.  Perhaps  personal  difficulties  would  have  resulted, 
customers  would  have  been  lost  in  the  neighborhood,  so  the 
factors  pocketed  their  feelings,  with  what  they  felt  would 
almost  certainly  be  their  losses,  and  said  nothing.  But  if 
these  profligate  planters  could  have  read  the  feelings  of 
the  factors  frequently  when  they  paid  their  checks,  they 
would  not  have  been  at  all  complimented  by  it.     Why,  sir. 


FURTHER    ON    THE   SITUATION.  151 

said  be,  warming  with  the  subject,  a  single  trip  of  a  steam- 
boat down  the  river,  with  its  load  of  lower  Mississippi 
planters,  frequently  precipitated  upon  the  factors  of  New 
Orleans  checks  amounting  to  fifty  thousand  dollars  for  tbe 
poker  and  champagne  debts  incurred  while  on  board,  and 
a  week  of  races  at  the  Metaire  course  at  New  Orleans,  has 
been  known  to  cause  a  disbursement  of  one  hundred  thou- 
sand dollars  by  factors  to  pay  the  checks  of  planters 
who  had  staked  on  the  wrong  horses — the  great  bulk  of 
which  would  be  an  advance  on  some  future  crop.  I  do  n't  be- 
lieve there  was  another  country  in  the  world  where  money 
was  loaned  in  enormous  sums,  to  pay  poker,  whisky,  and 
racing  debts,  as  it  was  here;  and  the  factors  knew  per- 
fectly well,  in  most  cases,  for  what  purpose  the  money  was 
going — indeed,  so  open  and  above  board  was  the  thing  con- 
ducted, that  I  've  heard  of  cases  where  checks  actually  read 
'  for  poker,'  '  champagne,'  or  '  wine,'  or  '  lost  in  betting  on  ' 
such  a  horse — naming  the  one.  What  would  a  bank  presi- 
dent think,  said  he,  up  in  the  country  you  came  from,  to 
have  an  application  made  to  him  for  a  loan  to  pay  for  a 
game  of  poker,  or  a  racing  debt? — and  yet  these  applica- 
tions were  daily  thrown  into  the  faces  of  the  cotton  factors 
down  here,  through  the  checks  of  the  planters,  and  duly 
honored. 

"  The  young  bloods  of  the  South  always  kept  their  own 
exclusive  bottles  of  brandy  on  ice  in  the  bar-rooms — French 
brandy,  generally,  at  ten  dollars  a  gallon.  The  planters 
always  settled  their  bills  monthly.  They  never  paid  the 
money,  but  gave  a  draft  on  their  factors.  Neither  the 
planters  nor  their  families  carried  money  about  them — what 
they  wanted  they  ordered,  and  the  bills  were  sent  to  their 
factors.  There  was  one  family  in  Louisiana — several 
brothers,  their  wives  and  children — that  would  sometimes 
occupy  a  third  of  the  St.  Charles  Hotel,  New  Orleans, 
and  their  ordinary  hotel  bills  would  be  $4,000  to  $5,000  a 
month. 


152  A   YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

*'  Some  planters,  more  prudent  than  the  rest,  conceived 
the  idea  of  disposing  of  a  portion  of  their  land  to  the 
new-comers,  as  Hampson  did,  using  enough  of  the  proceeds 
to  free  that  which  they  still  held  from  debt,  buying  their 
notes  at  greatly  less  than  par,  thus  making  up  in  discount 
what  they  otherwise  may  be  losing  in  the  price  of  the  land 
so  sold.  But,  as  a  general  rule,  strong  in  the  belief  of  large 
immediate  crop  profits,  and  a  rapid  advance  in  the  land, 
they  are  inclined  to  hold  on  to  their  acres,  expecting  to  re- 
lieve them  from  their  load  of  indebtedness  by  means  of  such 
crop  profits.  At  this  time,  there  is  perhaps  no  plantation 
eligibly  located  in  the  delta  of  the  Mississippi  but  would 
bring  fifty  dollars  an  acre.  All  places  offered  for  sale  are 
eagerly  purchased,  and  many  are  compelled  to  rent  land  who 
would  purchase  if  they  could  find  plantations  for  sale.  And 
some  are  compelled  to  give  up  the  idea  of  settling  here  be- 
cause they  can  not  find  suitable  places  either  for  sale  or  rent. 
In  fact,  there  is  not  only  a  scramble  for  labor,  but  there  is 
a  scramble  for  land.  AVhen  they  are  not  storming  at  the 
government,  every  body  is  talking  of  a  bale  to  a  bale  and 
a  half  to  the  acre,  of  land  free  from  overflow,  and  old 
planters  are  constantly  telling  what  this  place  and  that 
place  j)roduced  every  year  before  the  war,  in  such  an  off- 
hand way  as  to  give  the  impression  that  nothing  is  easier. 
The  general  idea  seems  to  be  that  the  margin  of  profit  is 
so  great  that  there  is  not  the  least  necessity  to  economize 
in  expenditures  ;  that  ten  to  fifteen  thousand  dollars  more 
or  less  on  a  thousand-acre  plantation  is  a  matter  of  very 
little  consequence. 

"  This  is  not  talk  for  the  purpose  of  selling  their  land, 
for  land  either  sells  or  rents  itself,  but  it  is  what  the  planters 
feel  and  believe.  Every  one  pooh-poohs  at  the  idea  of  the 
army -worm  coming  again  for  many  years.  The  planting 
and  cultivating  of  cotton  is  declared  to  be  a  perfect  play-spell. 
It  is  only  the  picking-season  when  there  is  a  press  of  work, 


FURTHER   ON   THE    SITUATION.  153 

and  nobody  in  the  valley  of  the  Mississippi  ever  expects  to 
be  able  to  pick  out  over  three-quarters  of  his  crop.  In- 
deed, the  whole  thing  seems  to  be  so  easy  of  accomplish- 
ment, and  so  simple,  that  there  can  be  no  such  thing  as 
failure. 

"About  all  that  seems  necessary  to  do  in  the  eyes  of  the 
new-comers,  and  for  that  matter  the  Southern  people  too, 
is  to  fill  our  pockets  with  cotton-seed,  then  ride  across  a 
thousand-acre  plantation,  when,  presto,  there  will  be  a 
bale  to  a  bale  and  a  half  of  cotton  to  the  acre,  in  the  fall, 
ripe  for  the  pickers  ! 

"During  my  first  journey  South,  and  during  this  trip 
for  labor,  I  have  never  found  a  man  who  has  himself  ever 
heard  of  a  man,  or  who  has  ever  heard  of  a  man  who  has 
seen  a  man,  wiio  has  not  made  a  full  crop  of  cotton,  as 
much  or  more  than  he  can  gather. 

"  The  fact  is,  as  Hampson  told  us,  the  planters  either  went 
to  Virginia  or  Kentucky  for  the  summer,  and  so  great  were 
their  crops  they  were  in  the  habit  of  buying  and  bringing 
out  a  few  hands  in  the  fall  each  year  to  help  pick  them 
out. 

"  How  intoxicating  this  talk  is,  to  be  sure  !  How  safe  it 
makes  our  enterprise  appear,  and  what  a  mountain  of 
profits  it  piles  up  !  Eeally,  Dobson  was  too  moderate  in  his 
estimate,  judging  from  the  statements  all  about  me — state- 
ments made  by  old  planters,  who  ought  to  know  just  what 
they  can  do,  because  they  know  just  what  they  have 
done. 

"  In  view  of  this  prospective  harvest  of  greenbacks,  I 
can  stand  with  comparative  complacency  the  constant 
tirades  which  I  hear  against  the  government,  and  I  actually 
find  myself  making  mental  apologies  for  them.  It  is  so  in  all 
countries,  I  say  to  myself,  where  the  opportunities  for  ac- 
cumulating wealth  rapidly  is  great.  Look  at  California  in 
the  early  dav.     Then  the  pistol  and  the  bowie-knife  were 


154  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

quite  as  common  as  they  are  here  now.  Go  to  any  newly- 
discovered  country,  and  you  will  find  quite  as  large  a  per- 
centage of  wild,  vicious  people  as  you  will  find  on  any  of 
the  lower  Mississippi  steamboats,  or  at  any  of  the  lower 
Mississippi  landings. 

"  T^o,  here  is  a  new  California,  as  it  were,  opened  up,  and 
the  people  have  a  perfect  right  to  be  a  drinking,  gambling, 
loafing,  loud-mouthed,  half-civilized,  unchristian  set.  That 
man  who,  as  1  write,  is  sitting  with  his  legs  over  the  back  of  a 
chair,  squirting  tobacco-juice,  drinking  whisky-toddies  every 
ten  minutes,  picking  his  teeth  with  his  huge  pocket-knife,  and 
swearing  like  a  Turk — that  man  has  a  perfect  right  to  talk 
aboutthechivalry  of  this  Eldorado,  for  is  he  not  one  of  them? 
And  the  fifty  others  about  him,  who  act  and  talk  as  he 
does,  hav  n't  they  a  perfect  right,  too,  for  are  n't  they  of  the 
elect?  And  the  inevitable  crowd  of  loose-jointed  young 
men,  middle-aged  men,  old  men  and  boys,  who  swarm 
in  and  out  at  every  landing  of  the  boat,  have  n't  they  a 
right  to  hang  over  the  bar  like  thirsty  camels  ?  Have  n't 
they  a  right  to  look  vicious,  to  talk  vicious,  to  act  vicious, 
and  to  be  6trapj)ed  down  with  pistols  and  bowie-knives,  to 
back  this  look  and  talk  and  action,  if  need  be  ?  And  those 
half  dozen  fellows,  steeped  in  debauch,  throwing  aAvay  some 
cotton-factor's  money  at  the  card-table — isn't  that  the  es- 
sence of  enjoyment,  according  to  their  standard? 

"  The  lecture-room,  books,  the  society  of  cultivated 
men  and  refined  women,  may  be  the  thing  in  other  por- 
tions of  this  country — but  down  here,  with  all  this  odor 
and  damp  of  newness  ?     No. 

"  In  the  light  of  twenty -five  cents  a  pound  for  cotton, 
and  a  bale  to  a  bale  and  a  half  an  acre,  these  irregularities 
are  softened  and  toned  down,  as  the  prospect  of  near 
wealth  only  will  soften  and  tone  down  such  irregulari- 
ties. 

"  These  are  a  people  who  are  charmed  by  exteriors. 
They  insist  on  seeing  on  the  walls  that  which  is  in  their 


FURTHER   ON   THE   SITUATION.  155 

hearts,  without  any  apparent  thought  as  to  whether  such 
display  is  either  policy  or  good  taste.  Hence  the  pictures 
of  their  Southern  Generals,  which  greet  the  eye  on  every 
side,  in  the  cahins  of  these  lower  Mississippi  river  steam- 
boats, at  the  hotels,  all  business  places,  all  places  of  resort ; 
and  hence  the  names  of  Southern  States,  Southern  Gener- 
als, and  leading  Southern  men  painted  on  the  side  wheels 
of  their  steamboats,  for  to  this  morbid  taste  steamboat 
owners,  many  of  whom  are  Western  men,  pander.  Great 
enthusiasm  is  just  at  this  time  expressed  over  the 
steamer  '  Eobert  E.  Lee,'  now  being  built  for  the  trade  be- 
tween Yicksburg  and  New  Orleans,  while  on  the  other 
hand  a  steamboat  named  'Philip  Sheridan,' which  came 
steaming  down  the  river  from  St.  Louis,  the  other  day,  en- 
countered such  a  storm  of  wrath  as  to  compel  her  owners 
to  put  her  in  extreme  Northern  waters  after  her  first  trip. 

"  These  people  never  seem  to  think  that  such  pictures 
and  names  may  be  unpleasant  to  new-comers,  or  to  tourists. 
Oh,  no,  they  have  no  philosophy  which  tells  of  pleasure  in 
sacrifice.  These  pictures  and  names  please  and  delight  them, 
they  say.  If  new-comers  and  tourists  don't  enjoy  them, 
let  them  keep  away.  If  this  sort  of  thing  keeps  immigra- 
tion away,  let  it  stay.  They  declare  they  will  feast  their 
eyes  on  these  pictures  even  if  death  to  the  Southern  coun- 
tr}^  lurks  behind  the  canvas.  They  will  do  this,  while  they 
will  not  for  a  moment  tolerate  pictures  of  Federal  Gener- 
als in  steamboat  cabins,  or  names  of  Federal  Generals  on 
the  side-wheels  of  steamboats,  or  hardly  from  the  lips  of 
individuals,  other  than  in  terms  of  derision.  Indeed,  that 
would  be  a  bold  captain  who  should  now  come  down  the 
river  with  such  pictures  in  his  cabin. 

"  Not  only  on  steamboats  and  in  hotels  is  this  unwhole- 
some taste  gratified,  but  placarded  on  bulletin-boards,  in 
fence-corners,  along  curb-stones,  in  stores,  in  groceries  and 
in  bar-rooms,  are  the  faces  of  Southern  Generals  made 
to   illustrate   every  thing,  from   a  bottle  of  bitters  to  a 


156  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

bar  of  common  washing  soap,  and  a  close  examination 
shows  that  these  articles  are  mostly  manufactured  in  the 
North  ! 

"  There  is  '  Our  Own  Southern  Bitters,'  with  a  picture  of 
Stonewall  Jackson  on  the  front,  profusely  advertised  in 
Yicksburg,  and  for  sale  in  the  bar  of  the  boat  I  came  down 
on.  Who  do  you  think  makes  it?  It  is  made  in  Memphis 
by  a  former  townsman  of  mine,  who  came  South  shortly 
after  our  troops  occupied  that  place.  I  met  him  at  Mem- 
phis as  we  came  down,  and  he  told  me,  with  a  wink,  what 
he  was  up  to.  '  My  picture  suits  the  Southern  people,'  he 
said  ;  '  any  thing  to  make  money,  you  know.'  So  that 
articles  not  manufactured  in  the  North  are  doubtless  in  al- 
most every  case  manufactured  by  Northern  men  bent  upon 
supj^lying  fuel  to  this  Southern  depravity,  because  in  so 
doing  they  make  money. 

"  There  is  '  Eobert  E.  Lee  '  every  thing.  In  fact,  a  per- 
son can  go  to  house-keeping  very  cleverly  with  only  'Eob- 
ert E.Lee'  articles.  Next  in  the  list  comes  Stonewall 
Jackson.  What  strikes  me  as  a  little  singular,  however,  is 
that  there  is  not  anywhere  displayed  a  picture  of  Jeff.  Davis, 
either  as  advertisement  or  otherwise,  nor  have  I  in  any 
private  place  I  have  visited  since  coming  here  seen  his  pic- 
ture. Whether  he  is  so  precious  that  it  is  considered  j^ro- 
fane  to  illustrate  him,  or  whether  he  is  not  a  particular 
favorite,  I  can  not  say,  but  such  is  the  fact. 

"  Fortunes  are  being  made  by  this  pandering  to  a  South- 
ern taste.  No  matter  how  worthless  the  article  may  be^ 
call  it  after  a  Southern  General,  and  adorn  it  with  his  pic- 
ture, and  what  a  sale  it  will  have  !  The  coffers  of  North- 
ern manufactories  are  being  filled  by  means  of  this  South- 
ern folly.  The  very  men  whom  these  people  would  not 
lift  out  of  the  mire  to  save  their  lives,  or  give  a  penny  to, 
to  keep  them  from  starving,  are  yet  lifted  into  wealth  and 
enabled  to  live  in  luxury.  Here  is  a  hotel,  in  Yicksburg, 
whose  proprietor  was  in  the  Federal  army,  and  every  pulsa- 


FURTHER  ON   THE   SITUATION.  157 

tion  of  his  heart  is  in  that  direction.  Yet  ho  is  a  shrewd 
fellow,  and,  being  in  trade,  must  please  his  customers,  so 
his  hotel  is  profusely  decorated  with  coarse  pictures  of 
Southern  Generals,  which  delight  the  eyes  of  his  patrons. 
Over  his  desk,  where  he  makes  up  his  cash,  there  looks 
down  upon  him  the  face  of  Lee,  and  whichever  way  he 
turns,  either  in  office,  diniDg-room,  or  parlor,  some  South- 
ern General  stares  at  him.  Ho  has  done  the  thing  up  to 
a  turn,  and  is  coining  money  in  consequence.  If  his  pa- 
trons knew  the  deception  he  Avas  practicing,  they  would 
hang  him  to  the  first  lamp-post.  Go  into  his  private  room 
where  he  sleeps,  as  I  did,  and  there  you  '11  find  over  his 
little  secretary  a  fine  steel-engraving  of  Lincoln,  and  on 
the  walls  in  different  parts  of  the  room  are  pictures  of 
Grant,  Sherman,  and  Sheridan.  None  but  the  initiated 
are  allowed  to  enter  this  room.  AVhat  a  living  deception 
he  is  practicing,  but  it  swells  his  bank  account,  and  that 's 
the  cure-all. 

"Just  now  there  are  springing  up  Southern  life  and 
Southern  fire  insurance  companies,  whose  principal  merits 
are  a  majority  of  true  Southern  men  in  the  board  of  di- 
rectory, and  a  Southern  General  for  a  figure-head  as  presi- 
dent. 

"  But  this  is  now  the  season  of  small  things,  and  the 
mania  is  confined  to  articles  of  food,  of  drink,  and  of  home 
consumption.  These  pictures,  seen  every-where,  and  the 
articles  and  localities  they  advertise,  entice  the  people  to 
expenditures  of  money,  and  to  places  which  their  means 
do  not  justify  and  neither  temperance  nor  good  morals 
permit.  They  serve  only  the  purpose  of  enriching  the  fiiw, 
and  they,,  chiefly  men  and  communities  to  whom  these 
people  are,  in  every  respect,  fi3reign  in  sympathy.  The 
whole  thing  is  in  bad  taste. 

"  If  there  has  to  be  this  profusion  of  pictures,  in  view  of 
the  immigration  pouring  into  the  country,  it  would  be  bet- 
ter to  vary  them  a  little,  showing  here  a  Southern  General, 


158  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

there  a  Federal  G-eneral.  But  there  is  no  mixing  down  here 
now,  it  is  the  straight  Confederate  or  nothing  !  Indeed,  a 
pearl  of  the  first  water  would  go  begging  at  a  penny,  if  it 
were  wrapped  in  the  photograph  of  a  Federal  General. 
Well,  these  pictures  please  the  Southern  eye  ;  the  North 
has  caught  the  idea,  and  is  utilizing  it  to  advertise  its  own 
wares.  It  is  the  kind  of  medicine  suited  to  the  Southern 
stomach,  and  is  a  prolific  source  of  profit  to  Northern 
doctors.  And,  after  all,  what  can  be  more  harmless  than 
G-enerals  on  paper,  or  their  names  on  the  side-wheels  of 
steamboats  ?  They  look  bright  and  gaudy  in  their  newness. 
Thus  shows  this  second  fire  bright  and  glowing  through- 
out the  South.  But  these  pictures  will  pale  and  fade  away 
in  time,  and  the  steamboats  will  rot,  just  as  will  pale  and 
fade  away  this  second  fire,  and  then  these  foolish  people 
will  see  how,  in  pleasing  their  fancy,  in  gratifying  what  is 
a  coarse  love,  and  not  a  refined  sentiment  which  always 
shuns  display — seeking  the  cloister  to  breathe  out  its  devo- 
tion— they  have  enriched  the  North.  Then  they  will  cer- 
tainly feel  more  chagrin  than  the  new-comer  or  tourist  now 
feels  annoyance  at  sight  of  these  things,  and  that  boy  is  per- 
haps now  born,  who  will  see  the  day  When  a  steamboat 
named  after  a  Federal  General  will  ride  the  Mississippi 
river,  the  admiration  of  all  from  St.  Louis  to  the  gulf,  and 
when  the  pictures  of  Federal  Generals  will,  through  all  the 
South,  be  regarded  as  fit  companions  for  Generals  of  the 
Bevolution." 

It  came  out  during  the  summer,  that  the  steamer  "  Eobt. 
E.  Lee,"  mentioned  in  my  letter,  and  over  which  the  South- 
ern people  were  so  jubilant,  was  principally  owned  by  Bos- 
ton men,  having  been  built  with  Boston  capital.  This  news 
created  a  great  storm  of  indignation,  and  its  captain, — a 
whole-souled,  courteous,  big-hearted  Southern  gentleman, 
who  had  come  up  by  degrees  from  the  lower  deck  to  the 
post  of  commander,  honestly  earning  every  stage  of  pro- 
motion, and  now  the  beau  ideal  of  a  thorough  steamboat- 


EXTRACTS    FROM    LETTERS    ON   THE   SITUATION.  159 

man,  beloved  by  all  "who  knew  him, — had  to  publish  a  card 
to  his  patrons,  apologizing  for  the  fact,  and  saying  he  had 
now  bought  Boston  out,  and  that  the  ''Lee,'  was,  in  every 
sense,  as  her  name  indicated,  a  Southern  boat.  And,  there- 
upon, the  Southern  breast  became  pacified,  although  for  a 
long  time  the  captain  was  growled  at  for  having  gone  to 
Boston  to  borrow  money  to  build  his  boat. 


CHAPTER  XXXI. 

EXTRACTS   FROM   LETTERS    ON   THE    SITUATION. 

I  SHALL  here  give  the  reader  further  extracts  from  let- 
ters written  during  my  labor-hunting  experience  at  Yicks- 
burg,  these  having  been  written  while  every  thing  was 
fresh  in  my  mind,  are  more  apt  to  be  substantially  correct 
than  any  thing  I  might  now  write,  trusting  only  to  my 
recollection. 

"  What  a  despotic  disposition  there  is  in  these  people — 
which  prompts  them  to  compel,  if  possible,  all  in  their 
midst,  no  matter  what  may  have  been  their  previous  life 
or  training,  to  think  exactly  as  they  do.  Instead  of  a  feel- 
ing of  surprise  or  distrust  at  finding  men  fresh  from  the 
North  who  sympathize  with  them,  and  who  denounce  as 
they  denounce,  they  seem  rather  to  be  8urj)rised  at  not 
finding  it. 

"  They  never  appear  for  a  moment  to  doubt  the  sin- 
cerity of  expressions  in  their  favor,  on  the  part  of  new- 
comers. In  fact  they  seem  to  be  perfectly  blind  to  the  idea 
that  there  can  be  any  other  mode  of  thought  than  theirs. 
A  Northern  man  who  comes  here,  either  as  a  visitor  or  to 


A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

live,  is  expected  immediately  to  share  the  quarrels  of  the 
South  and  to  adopt  its  customs ;  that  is,  among  other 
things,  to  drink  whisky  as  often  as  the  natives  do,  to  take 
a  hand  at  poker,  and,  above  all,  to  carry  a  pistol,  under 
penalty  of  being  branded  as  a  coward  !  It  never  seems  to 
enter  their  minds  to  doubt  the  sincerity  of  the  expressions 
of  a  man  who  comes  among  them  after  his  habits  are 
formed,  and  whose  whole  mode  of  life  and  action  has  been 
the  very  02:)posite  of  theirs,  and  yet,  the  next  day  after  his 
arrival,  is  found  abusing  that  which  they  abuse,  and  bless- 
ing that  which  they  bless.  Ko,  the}^  never  doubt  such 
a  man  !  He  is  reliable,  trustworthy,  and  a  good  fel- 
low. 

"  Nor  does  there  seem  to  be  any  disposition  shown  to  lay 
aside  any  of  their  prejudices,  except  so  far  as  the  power  of 
the  bayonet  compels  them.  'Here  we  stand,'  they  say, 
'  and  here  we  will  continue  to  stand.  If  immigration  from 
the  North  wants  to  come  to  us,  and  will  believe,  act,  and 
talk  as  we  do,  it  is  all  right.  Let  it  come.  We  can  help  it 
spend  its  money ;  we  can  take  advantage  of  the  friendship 
the  black  people  feel  for  it  in  securing  labor  for  us,  and  thus 
drive  a  profitable  bargain.' 

"  There  is  a  sort  of  an  idea  that  we  who  come  here  from 
the  North,  must  come  because  we  are  disgusted  with  that 
country.  They  say  a  man  does  not  leave  the  country  he 
was  born  and  reared  in,  unless  he  has  had  enough  of  it,  and 
he  does  not  go  to  a  new  country,  unless  he  is  willing  to 
adopt  the  habits  of  its  people,  as  well  as  its  customs  and 
mode  of  thought.  They  seem  to  have  a  notion  that  those 
of  us  who  were  in  the  Federal  army,  were  there  because  we 
were,  in  some  way,  dragooned  into  it,  and  that  we  are  now 
here  ready  to  sympathize  with,  and  feel  for  them  ;  in  short, 
that  we  are  so  much  plastic  clay,  ready  to  receive  our  im- 
pressions from  them. 

"  There  is  nothing  in  their  conversation  which  implies 
belief  that  there  are  two  sides  to  a  question.     There  are 


EXTRACTS   FROM    LETTERS    ON   THE   SITUATION.         161 

no  two  sides  to  their  question.  Whatever  they  do  is  right. 
Whatever  the  North  does,  is  wrong.  Southern  people  are 
all  saints.  Northern  people  are  all  sinners.  The  South  is 
the  embodiment  of  honor  and  chivalry- — the  North,  of 
meanness  and  depravity.  Said  one  Massachusetts  man 
to  another,  both  of  whom  had  lived  in  the  South  for  twenty 
years  : 

"  '  AVhy  is  it,  that  wo  hate  Yankees  so  much  worse  than 
the  native  Southerners  ?  '  " 

"  '  I  reckon  it  is  because  we  know  how  mean  and  low- 
down  they  are,  from  having  been  born  among  'em,'  he 
replied. 

"  From  this,  it  would  seem  that  it  is  actually  true,  that 
Northern  men  are  the  extremists.  The  old  story  the  world 
over — the  convert,  the  zealot !  Perhaps  the  reason  why 
the  Southern  people  now  expect  that  those  who  come  among 
them,  will  immediately  adopt  their  views  is,  that  such  was 
the  case  before  the  war,  not  only  so,  as  is  seen  by  the  above 
question  and  answer,  but  those  Northerners  who  settled  in 
the  South,  had  gone  beyond  the  native  Southerners  in  their 
zeal  to  demonstrate  their  devotion. 

"  It  does  not  seem  to  occur  to  the  Southern  people  that, 
for  years  before  the  war,  mainly  those  came  South  to  live 
who  sympathized  with  the  institution  of  slavery,  or  such  as 
had  no  fixed  principles,  and  could  take  on  the  hue  and  sen- 
timent of  any  community  where  they  might  chance  to  find 
themselves  ;  that  there  were,  also,  other  classes  who  came 
here,  such  as  the  teachers,  and  preachers  for  the  supposed 
wealthy  families,  who  frequently  married  into  those  fami- 
lies, and  thus  became  the  same  in  sentiment  as  they  were 
in  interest.  They  do  not  reflect  that  Northern  men  who 
came  here  before  the  war,  soon  became  slave-holders  them- 
selves, and  thus  holding  a  common  property  with  the  South- 
ern people,  they  had  a  common  interest  with  them ;  but  that 


162  A    YEAR   OP   WRECK. 

there  being  no  such  common  property  now,  there  can  be  no 
such  common  interest.  The  idea  has  not  yet  been  even  con- 
ceived that  there  can  or  will  be  fraternization  on  any  other 
subject,  or  that  there  will  be  any  necessity  for  it.  No, 
slavery — a  modified  form  just  now — is  here  to  unite  all 
hearts,  as  in  the  olden  time. 

"  The  fact  is,  there  is  no  reason  about  these  people.  It 
is  all  impulse.  Born,  or  living  under  a  semi-tro2:)ical  sun, 
the  blood  runs  warmly  through  their  veins.  What  is  in  the 
heart,  is  instantly  in  the  Drain.  The  desire  and  the  pos- 
session must  be  simultaneous.  There  is  no  stopping  to 
reason  whether  or  not  the  desire  is  feasible,  or  for  the 
common  good,  since  for  them  reason  does  not  exist.  Once 
the  object  in  heart  and  brain,  and  there  is  the  dash  for  it. 

"  Nowhere  is  there  any  evidence  that  the  lessons  of  the 
war  have  taught  them  wisdom.  Its  discipline  seems  only  to 
have  lasted  while  the  punishment  lasted.  They  say  they 
only  stopped  because  they  were  physically  unable  to  con- 
tinue the  contest — not  from  any  conviction  that  they  were 
in  the  wrong — and  that,  thanks  to  the  President,  the  stop 
is  but  temporary.  Their  experience  in  the  crucible  has 
not  taken  out  the  dross.  The  fires  are  being  rekindled 
for  the  second  conflict,  and  this  time,  they  say,  they  will 
come  out  victorious. 

"  Thus,  you  will  see,  the  Southern  people  are  still  spoiled 
children  ;  still  reaching  for  the  fruit  that  has  been  taken 
from  them,  and  because  it  was  once  theirs,  and  because 
they  still  desire  it,  they  are  determined  to  possess  it  again. 
And  so,  because  they  desire  the  new-comer  to  think  and 
act  as  they  do,  why,  of  course,  it  must  be  so,  for  the  reason 
that  it  always  was  so. 

^'  There  will,  therefore,  of  necessity  be  antagonism  be- 
tween the  two  elements.  First,  because  the  new-comer  is 
satisfied  with  the  results  of  the  war — the  Southerner  is 
not;   second,  for  the  reason  that  the  former  has  no  predju- 


EXTRACTS   FROM   LETTERS   ON   THE   SITUATION.  163 

dice  about  employing  labor  and  paying  it  wages — the 
Southerner  has ;  third,  the  new-comer  will  naturally  be- 
lieve in  educating,  in  Christianizing  and  assisting  the  negro 
to  become  a  property-holder,  while  these  ideas  are  exceed- 
ingly odious  to  the  Southerner.  These  antagonisms  may 
or  may  not  be  active,  but  they  will  be  decided  every-where. 
No  doubt  what  will  do  more  than  any  thing  else  to  soften 
and,  in  time,  to  dispel  them,  will  be  for  the  South  to  real- 
ize, to  a  moderate  extent,  its  dream  of  wealth  through 
large  crops  and  high  prices  of  cotton.  Money  is  the  best 
known  lubricator !  On  the  contrary,  a  failure  to  realize 
this  dream  will  make  the  present  hard  times  still  harder, 
and,  such  is  human  nature,  the  Southern  people  will  nat- 
urally seek  an  excuse  for  their  failure  in  the  short-comings 
of  free-labor,  and  in  the  teachings  and  influences  of  the 
new-comer,  and,  therefore,  the  antagonisms  just  mentioned 
will  become  more  and  more  active  and  decided. 

"  But  that  is  all  in  the  future.  Just  now  there  is  every- 
where apparent  an  exaggerated  idea  that  neither  the  re- 
sults of  the  war,  nor  the  new-comer,  are  to  produce  any 
change  in  public  sentiment  here ;  there  must  still  be 
the  same  despotism  which  was  the  natural  result  of  slavery. 

"It  is  a  people  with  these  sentiments  which  have  to  deal 
with  this  crude  mass  of  free-labor  which  the  war  has 
thrown  upon  the  country.  This  is  now  pliable  in  their 
hands ;  they  are  the  architects  and  the  builders  who  are  to 
take  it  and  mold  and  fashion  it  into  a  thing  of  use  and 
beauty,  or  into  an  instrument  of  evil. 

"It  is  this  bone,  muscle,  sinew,  and  flesh,  and  this 
feeble  brain  which  is  to  be  taught  that  its  freedom  is  not 
that  of  idleness,  but  that  it  is  a  freedom  to  work  and  to  re- 
ceive for  its  own  use  and  disposition  the  fruits  of  such 
work,  each  man  to  choose  his  own  master,  to  whom  shall 
belong  that  portion  of  his  time  allotted  to  labor,  as 
completely  and  as  solely  as  his  body  had  been  formerly 
owned.     It  is  also  to  be  taught  that  freedom  neither  allows 


164  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

Dor  justities  stealing  or  fighting,  or  vice  of  any  kind  ;  and 
that  stealing  does  not  simply  mean  taking  another's  prop- 
erty, but  that  it  means  as  well  taking  the  time  it  has  sold 
to  another  and  idling  it  away,  as  well  as  a  failure  to  ren- 
der eflScient  labor,  when  it  has  the  ability  and  capacity  so 
to  do.  It  is  to  be  taught  that  there  is  no  personal  wrong 
which  there  is  not  a  law  to  remedy,  and  that  under  no  cir- 
cumstance is  it  justifiable  to  take  the  law  in  its  own  hand, 
and  itself  inflict  the  penalty. 

"  And,  above  all,  the  courts  of  the  country  are  to  be 
freely  oj^ened  to  it,  to  protect  it  in  its  rights,  as  well  as  to 
prove  to  it  that  it  has  such  rights. 

"  It  is  this  labor,  well  skilled  in  farming — men  and  wo- 
men in  stature,  but  babes  in  the  role  of  freemen — which, 
in  such  hands,  has  for  its  task  to  test  the  experiment  of 
cotton-raising  in  the  South.  Alas  that  the  artists  do  not 
show  more  honesty  of  purpose — something  of  a  determin- 
ation to  make  the  best  of  it !  How  much  of  future  suf- 
fering a  wise,  prudent,  and  economical  course  this  year 
would  save." 


CHAPTEE  XXXII. 

IMPRESSIONS    AND    EXPERIENCES   IN   VICKSBURG. 

I  FOUND  every  thing  in  Yicksburg  on  the  stir,  at  the 
early  muster-out  of  the  several  negro  regiments — the  ho- 
tels were  full  of  planters,  in  search  of  labor,  and  the  com- 
petition was  lively  enough.  Lavish  promises  were  being 
made  on  all  sides,  and  each  j)lanter  was  commending  his 
own  plantation  in  glowing  terms  to  the  apparently  credu- 
lous freedmen. 

It  was   really    true,   that   the   great   mass   of    negroes 


IMPRESSIONS   AND    EXPERIENCES    IN    VICKSBURG.        165 

shortly  to  be  mustered  out,  as  well  as  those  still  remaining 
in  Vicksburg,  either  from  the  mustering-out  of  former  reg- 
iments, or  from  the  small  army  of  camp-followers,  servants, 
and  others,  were  sincerely  anxious  to  get  into  the  country, 
and  the  statement  circulated  that  they  were  disjDOsed  as  a  class 
to  swarm  into  the  cities,  and  remain  there,  was  not  correct. 
The  officers  of  the  colored  regiments  assured  me  that,  with 
an  occasional  exception,  the  men  of  their  commands  wanted 
to  leave  Vicksburg  as  soon  as  they  were  mustered  out,  and 
could  find  good  homes  ;  and  from  the  heads  of  the  Freed- 
mens'  Bureau  I  learned  that  the  same  wish  prevailed  among 
the  black  people  generally,  but  that  there  was  a  wide- 
spread feeling  of  distrust  as  to  their  treatment  in  the 
country,  which  was  the  real  secret  of  their  hesitation  ;  and 
but  for  this,  they  gave  it  as  their  opinion  there  would 
not  be  negroes  enough  left  in  the  city  to  meet  its  current 
demand  for  day-laborers. 

There  Avas  no  diversity  of  opinion  on  this  point,  among 
either  army  or  government  officers,  or  the  class  of  men 
who  were  in  sympathy  with  the  negroes,  and  to  whom  they 
would  express  themselves  freely. 

A  characteristic  of  the  black  people  which  struck  me  as 
singular  was  that  there  did  not  seem  to  be  any  desire  on 
their  part  to  return  to  the  places  they  had  left  as  slaves. 
On  the  contrary,  the  desire  with  them  was,  to  find  a  spot 
where  they  could  make  themselves  a  home.  It  was  just  as  if 
the  white  soldiers,  on  being  mustered  out,  had  almost  uni- 
versally sought  homes  in  different  States  from  those  in 
which  they  had  enlisted.  It  would  seem  from  this  that 
the  black  people  had  not  experienced  any  real  home-feeling 
in  the  localities  where  they  had  endured  their  servitude, 
else  they  would  now  feel  a  disposition  to  return  to  them. 
No,  not  one  of  them  talked  of  going  home  ;  their  chief  de- 
sire seemed  to  be  to  find  a  home.  Occasionally  something 
would  be  said  about  hunting  up  women  they  had  lived  with 
before   the  war,  and   children  which  they  had  by  these. 


166  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

Tvhen  they  came  to  be  well-located,  but  there  was  not  much 
of  this.  The  predominant  idea  appeared  to  be,  that  their 
release  from  slavery  had  cut  them  loose  from  all  former  as- 
sociations ;  that  in  their  changed  relations  of  freedmen,  they 
were,  so  to  speak,  born  anew.  Not  that  they  reasoned  this 
thing  out  at  all,  but  this  was  the  practical  working  of  it. 

In  many  cases,  the  ^'  took-up  women,"  called  wives, 
doubtless  became  camp-followers, — cooking,  washing,  and 
so-forth,  for  the  soldiers, — and-in  this  way  held  on  to  the  men 
who  had  taken  them  up.  With  all  the  colored  regiments 
there  was  about  an  equal  number  of  women  to  the  men. 
Most  of  them  had  each  either  a  child  or  children.  All 
lived  with  men,  on  the  '•  took-up  "  principle,  with  but  an 
occasional  exception.  Doubtless  it  was  this  very  system  of 
unlicensed  association  which  had  much  to  do  with  eradi- 
cating the  home  feeling  which  they  must  otherwise  have 
experienced.  If  they  had  left  wives  or  children  behind, 
they  would  long  to  return  to  them  ;  but  either  their  '-took- 
up  "  women  had  followed  the  regiment,  or  new  women 
were  "  taken -up  "  with,  wherever  the  regiment  spent  any 
time,  and  so,  when  the  war  was  over,  these  frequent  changes 
had  blotted  out  every  feeling  of  a  domestic  attachment  to  the 
places  which  had  known  them  as  slaves,  leaving  each  negro 
free  to  take  his  latest  favorite  (if  the  first  had  not  clung  to 
him  during  his  camp-life),  with  what  children  he  might 
have  by  her,  and  find  a  home. 

The  military  marriages  had  evidently  done  but  little  in 
the  way  of  remedying  the  "  taking-up  "  process.  The  cus- 
toms of  a  lifetime  could  not  be  removed,  even  by  the  strong 
arm  of  the  military  during  the  rough  experience  of  camp- 
life.  The  morals  of  an  army  are  never  improved  during 
war,  and  so  the  negroes,  who  had  been  educated  as  slaves 
to  a  system  called  marriage,  but  which  was  in  fact  only  a 
system  of  propagation,  had  with  little  or  no  restraint  from 
their  officers,  allowed  their  strong  animal  propensities  to 
run  riot  with  them,  and  every  new  bivouac  was  the  scene 


IMPRESSIONS   AND    EXPERIENCES   IN   VICKSBURQ.        167 

of  fresh  license  ;  all  thought  of  a  home  in  the  past  was  ob- 
literated, with  all  desire  to  seek  for  it  now  that  they  were 
free  to  do  so. 

The  cvery-day  negro  life,  which  I  saw  about  mo,  was  not 
Buch  as  I  had  read  of  in  Northern  books,  or  had  heard 
loudly  asserted  to  be  true  by  Southern  men.  Here  they 
were  herding  together  like  a  flock  of  sheep.  Even  broad 
daylight  was  scarcely  any  restraint  to  the  gratification  of 
their  desires,  but  when  night  came  on  it  was  fearful.  Men, 
women,  and  children  were  piled  along  in  promiscuous  rows 
in  their  hovels  and  in  their  camps.  The  picture  can  not  be 
painted  too  black;  it  would  all  be  tame  in  sight  of  the 
reality.  Men  were  on\y  restrained  by  fear  of  personal  vi- 
olence from  trespassing  on  the  ground  temporarily  occupied 
by  another,  and  women  b}^  the  fear  of  having  their  eyes 
scratched  out  by  jealous  sisters.  This  fear  of  joersonal  vio- 
lence, on  cither  side,  was  the  only  break-water  to  the  tide 
of  vice,  which  was  sweeping  through  the  haunts  and  dwel- 
ling-places of  the  blacks.  Was  this  one  of  the  results  of 
the  war  ?  Said  a  thoughtful  man  in  Yicksburg  to  me  when 
I  questioned  him  : 

"  The  restraint  of  the  master,  in  order  to  procure  a  rapid 
increase  in  the  number  of  slaves,  is  gone.  The  legal  re- 
straint of  husband  and  wife  is  not  here,  has  never  been 
here,  because  marriage  did  not  exist  among  the  slaves  of 
the  South.  Sometimes  a  sort  of  a  farce  was  practiced, 
which  squinted  that  way,  but  it  was  no  marriage  in  fact. 
No  more  was  virtue  or  chastity  taught  them." 

Was  it  any  wonder,  then,  herded  together  as  'they  were, 
in  view  of  this  previous  education,  that  they  continued  its 
practices — the  only  difference  being  that  what  had  once 
been  confined,  to  accomplish  a  rapid  increase,  was  now  pro- 
miscuous ?  If  the  glimpses  I  was  getting  of  the  black  peo- 
ple were  correct  pictures  then  had  the  Northern  writers 
on  the  subject  scribbled  much  foolishness,  and  the  Southern 
people  practiced  deception — Northern  writers,  first,  in  de- 


168  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

scribing  the  pangs  incident  to  the  separation  of  families  as 
being  terrible,  and  the  home  feeling  surrounding  the 
negro  cabin  as  very  strong;  the  Southern  people,  in  stat- 
ing that  the  blacks  were  only  allowed  to  live  together 
when  married,  and  that  they  were  taught  to  be  virtuous. 

If  the  pangs  attendant  upon  separation  were  indeed 
so  great,  why,  now  that  these  negro  men  were  free  to  go 
where  they  chose,  did  they  not  return  to  the  women  and 
children  they  had  left  behind?  Why,  if  the  home  feel- 
ing was  60  great,  did  they  not  make  a  home  there  whence 
they  came  ?  Alas,  I  fear  that  it  was  simply  because  neither 
the  pang  nor  the  home  feeling  existed.  The  "  tak- 
ing-up  "  process,  called  marriage,  made  a  home  for  the  sep- 
arated ones,  wherever  they  might  be  located,  within  a 
week  after  their  sej^aration,  and  the  old  "  wife  "  or  '-  hus- 
band "  was  at  once  forgotten  in  the  new. 

These  statements  will  be  humiliating  to  the  extremes  of 
the  North  and  the  vSouth,  and  I  make  them  with  hesita- 
tion. But  I  find  them  justified  by  my  observation,  and 
therefore  I  write  them  down.  It  is  not  the  ideal  negro  nor 
the  ideal  Southerner  that  I  am  dealing  with.  I  am  dealing 
with  the  negro  classes  as  I  found  them  in  every-day  life — in 
their  working  dress ;  the  negro  with  the  odor  of  the  planta- 
tion on  him,  just  as  servitude  made  him,  with  all  his  ways 
and  ideas  and  customs,  his  short-comings,  his  vices,  and  his 
virtues.  And  so  with  the  Southerner,  and  the  new-comer 
also.  "Whatever  of  good  or  of  bad  I  found  in  them,  is  to 
be  freely  and  fairly  shown,  remembering,  as  I  do,  that  the 
plant  follows  the  kernel,  and  whatever  there  is  of  defect, 
or  to  be  praised,  is  but  the  legitimate  fruit  of  the  plant. 

What  I  have  observed  of  the  negro  and  the  Southerner 
I  have  not  hesitated  to  speak.  If  it  is  not  altogether  com- 
plimentary, neither  is  the  picture  of  my  own  class.  The 
former  may  improve,  and  so  may  we.  We  are,  in  this  year 
of  grace  1866,  but  babes  in  the  development  of  the  agri- 
cultural resources  of  the  South,  under  the  new  order  of 


JOURNEY  BACK  TO  HEBRON  PLANTATION,  ETC.    169 

things — all  of  us — each  class  in  its  way.  The  negro  is  a 
distrustful,  suspicious  babe,  with  the  vaguest  idea  as  to  the 
true  meaning  of  freedom.  The  Southerner  is  a  vicious,  re- 
bellious babe ;  and  the  IS'orthcrn  new-comer  is  a  very  ig- 
norant babe.  But  wo  all  have  to  draw  our  nourishment 
from  the  same  breast;  we  are  all  traveling  the  same  road ; 
our  goal  is  a  common  one,  and,  in  time,  we  may  come  to  be 
the  best  of  friends,  though  we  are  looking  askance  at  each 
other  now.  The  weal  or  woe  of  this  Southern  country  is 
in  our  hands.  If  the  good  shall  predominate,  it  will  bo 
well ;  if  not  so,  we  shall  be  largely  the  sufferers.  Our  bed 
will  be  one  of  roses  or  of  thorns,  just  as  we  elect.  If  our 
short-comings  be  the  result  of  ignorance,  we  shall  be 
pitied;  if  of  bad  intent,  we  shall  be  blamed.  But,  in 
either  case,  ours  will  be  the  suffering. 


CHAPTEE  XXXIII. 

MY    RETURN    TO    THE    HEBRON     PLANTATION    WITH     LABOR, 
AND   WHAT    CAME    OF   IT. 

Upon  comparing  notes,  I  found  that  the  Colonel  of  one 
of  the  negro  regiments  had  rented  the  plantation  next 
above  us  on  the  river,  and  that  he  was  going  to  take  his 
labor  from  among  the  discharged  soldiers  of  his  command, 
lie  thought  he  could,  without  doubt  or  trouble,  take  up  all 
the  labor  we  sjiould  want,  with  his  own  ;  and  thus  our 
great  necessity  seemed  to  be  supplied.  Previous  to  the 
muster-out,  he  had  purchased  his  mules  and  his  general 
outfit,  and  got  them  all  together,  so  that  on  the  day  follow- 
ing the  muster-out  he  was  ready  to  leave  for  his  new  home. 
8 


170  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

The  Colonel  wanted  about  forty  hands,  and  we  needed 
about  thirty-five,  making  seventy-five  in  all.  But  when 
the  hour  of  departure  came,  only  about  sixty  reported,  in- 
cluding women.  There  were  about  thirty-five  men  and 
twenty-five  women,  with  perhaps  from  twelve  to  fifteen 
children.  At  least  twenty  others  promised  to  follow  a  day 
or  two  after. 

We  made  a  pretty  sight  when  we  left  Yicksburg  with 
our  large  cargo  of  freedmen.  It  was  said  to  be  the  choicest 
lot  of  laborers  which  had  left  that  port  during  the  season. 
There  was  not  an  indifferent  one  among  them,  if  appear- 
ances and  their  record  in  the  army  were  to  be  relied  on. 
The  men  assisted  in  getting  the  Colonel's  mules  down  to 
the  boat — a  wild,  unbroken  lot — and  handled  them  as  if 
they  were  used  to  it.  So  eager  did  they  seem  to  be  to  get 
to  work,  that  some  of  them  picked  out  the  particular  mules 
they  were  going  to  plow  with,  and  when  the  plows  them- 
selves came  down,  they  inspected  and  handled  them  in  such 
a  way  as  to  denote  undoubted  skill.  The  plows  were  of  the 
Calhoun  pattern,  and  were  therefore  orthodox.  The  Colo- 
nel's hobby  w^as  deep  plowing,  and  so  he  had  procured  a 
couj)le  of  sub-soil.plows,  which  the  negroes  declared  to  be  of 
"  no  sort  of  recount."  They  did  not  appear  to  be  in  the  least 
troubled  at  the  lateness  of  the  season.  "We'll  ebberlast- 
in'ly  far  up  de  groun',  when  we  gits  into  it,"  said  they, 
one  and  all,  and  their  enthusiasm  to  "get  into  it"  was  un- 
bounded. "  I 's  been  soljerin*  for  more  'n  three  years,  but 
I  reckon  I  haven't  forgot  how  to  handle  de  plow,"  ex- 
claimed a  thick-lipped  fellow.  At  the  question  of  his 
knowledge  of  plowing,  another  answered,  with  a  snort, 
"  Kin  de  duck  swim  ?  " 

It  was  highly  refreshing  to  see  so  much  zeal  for  farm- 
labor,  and  it  made  me  feel  that  if  we  had  these  hands  for 
the  Hebron  plantation,  our  task  in  the  future  would  be  easy. 
But  we  should  get  a  portion  of  them,  and  in  a  few  days 
the  rest  would   come   along,  and   then   we   should   have 


JOURNEY  BACK  TO  HEBRON  PLANTATION,  ETC.    171 

enough.  It  certainly  looked  as  if  our  labor  struggle  was 
over. 

There  were  a  good  many  planters  at  the  landing  to  see 
us  off,  and  they  looked  at  our  magnificent  force  with  un- 
mistakable jealousy.  There  was  no  necessity  of  watching 
these  splendid  fellows — they  meant  "  business."  N'o  labor- 
broker  or  labor-jumper  need  try  to  tamper  with  them; 
and  that  class  of  persons  evidently  felt  it,  for  they  hung 
around  on  the  outskirts  of  our  crowd,  and  did  not  dare  to 
mix  with  them. 

Several  of  the  men  had  been  the  orderly-sergeants  of 
their  companies,  and  others  of  them  had  held  some  non- 
commissioned office  ;  so  there  was  much  calling  of  ser- 
geant so-and-so  and  corporal  so-and-so,  in  their  excitement 
evidently  forgetting  that  they  were  no  longer  in  the  army. 
There  was  one  little  fellow  they  called  Sergeant  Watson, 
who  appeared  greatly  in  demand.  He  was  not  over  five 
feet  in  height,  small  of  bone,  and  spare  in  flesh,  perhaps 
weighing  one  hundred  and  twenty  pounds.  He  had  an 
active  eye,  and  a  laugh  which  could  be  distinctly  heard  for 
two  squares.  He  was  full  of  fun  and  humor,  and  kept 
whatever  crowd  he  was  in  constantly  stirred  with  his 
drollery.  His  figure  and  aj^pearauce  were  any  thing  but 
prepossessing,  but  his  manner  was  winning,  and  he  was 
evidently  very  bright.  It  seems  he  had  been  sold  from 
North  Carolina  into  Mississippi,  and  had  been  taught 
black-smithing  by  his  last  master.  During  the  marches 
of  the  regiment,  he  found  a  beautiful  quadroon  woman, 
whom  he  fell  passionately  in  love  with,  and,  notwithstand- 
ing his  ungainly  and  diminutive  figure,  he  won  her  con- 
sent to  follow  the  command  to  Vicksburg,  where  they  were 
married  by  some  army  chaplain,  under  the  auspices  of  the 
Freedmen's  Bureau. 

Jimmy  had  his  wife  with  him,  and  he  was  evidently  very 
fond  of  her ;  and  well  he  might  be,  for  she  was,  indeed,  a 
most  beautiful  woman.     Her  figure  was  commanding,  and 


172  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

her  face  would  have  claimed  attention  anywhere.  The 
white  blood  in  her  veins  j^redominated  so  strongly  that 
the  pink  showed  clearly  on  her  cheek.  Her  eyes  were 
large  and  coal-black,  and  were  fringed  with  lashes  equally 
black,  and  of  the  most  luxuriant  growth,  as  was  her  long, 
wavy  black  hair,  which  was  plaited  in  folds,  and  hung 
down  her  back  fully  two  feet.  Her  mouth  was  large,  and 
when  her  red,  pouting  lips  were  opened  in  laughter,  they 
exposed  rows  of  teeth  of  dazzling  whiteness ;  and  she  had 
dimples  in  her  cheeks,  such  as  are  seen  frequently  in  baby- 
hood and  childhood,  but  seldom  in  maturity.  Her  general 
appearance  bespoke  a  rich,  ripe  tropical  growth.  When  I 
first  saw  her  she  wore  a  pink  callico  dress,  so  arranged  that 
the  sleeve  afforded  glimpses  of  the  most  finely  rounded 
arm  ;  and  there  was  the  small  delicate  hand,  with  taper 
wrist  and  fingers  ;  while  from  under  her  dress  peej^ed  a  foot 
so  diminutive  it  must  have  challenged  admiration,  even 
if  the  fair  shape  above  had  not  been  there.  There  was 
no  superabundance  of  clothing  about  her,  so  her  sim- 
ple pink  gown  wrapped  her  closely,  bringing  out  her  per- 
fectly rounded  form.  She  was  as  straight  as  an  arrow; 
and  her  lovely  head  sat  proudly  upon  her  equally  lovely 
shoulders.  There  was  no  apparent  consciousness,  on  her 
part,  of  her  dazzling  beauty — it  was  simply  the  expres- 
sion of  perfect  j)hysical  health,  and  ripe  animal  growth, 
which  made  her  appear  so  majestic.  And  what  a  lightness 
and  elasticity  of  step  she  showed  as  she  sprang  on  the 
boat,  aided  by  her  active,  wiry,  gallant  little  husband. 
Mary,  for  that  was  her  name,  mixed  and  mingled,  with 
perfect  freedom,  with  the  negroes  of  the  party,  taking 
her  place  on  the  lower  deck  with  the  common  herd.  The 
ebony  faces  about  her  brought  out  her  marvelous  loveli- 
ness in  a  still  more  striking  contrast,  while  the  simplicity 
and  modesty  of  her  manner,  the  frequent  smile,  occasional 
merry,  not  boisterous,  laugh  at  some  witticism  on  the  part 
of  her  Jimmy,  the  perfect  unconsciousness  of  her  great 


JOURNEY   BACK   TO    HEBRON   PLANTATION,    ETC.  173 

wealth  of  beauty,  the  gracefulness  of  her  very  position, 
all  told  unmistakably  that  there  was  gentle  blood  in  her 
veins.  She  undoubtedly  belonged  to  the  class  of  slaves 
known  as  house  servants,  and  had  been  not  only  the  prop- 
erty, but  actually  the  child,  of  some  planter,  under  whose 
roof  the  bleaching  out  process  had  been  carried  on  until 
here  was  a  magnificently  well-developed  woman  with  only 
a  small  portion  of  African  blood  in  her  veins.  The  aboli- 
tion of  slavery  had  doubtless  nipped  in  the  bud  what 
would  have  been  either  a  forced  or  voluntary  career,  on  her 
part,  by  placing  her  in  the  arms  of  a  husband  instead  of 
the  embrace  of  some  owner.  She  did  not  appear  to  feel 
the  least  out  of  place  with  her  rude  surroundings,  although 
she  looked  so.  There  were  no  longing  glances  toward  the 
upper  guard  of  the  steamboat,  where  the  white  folks  stood 
eyeing  her  beauty.  She  seemed  to  be  perfectly  satisfied 
where  she  was,  and  apparently  unconscious  that  she  was 
the  particular  object  of  gaze.  But  I  noticed,  as  her  Jimmy 
brought  their  "  plunder"  on  board,  there  was  a  neat  black- 
walnut  bedstead,  a  clean  mattress,  and  a  bundle  out  of 
which  peeped  bed-clothes  unmistakably  clean.  There  was 
undoubted  neatness  in  these  which  corresponded  with  that 
seen  in  her  pretty  pink  dress,  her  carefully  plaited  hair, 
and  her  well-shod  feet.  There  was  a  distinction,  after  all, 
between  her  and  the  common  herd ;  a  delicate,  but  decided 
distinction,  in  these  little  belongings,  as  well  as  in  her  per- 
son. She  was  the  acknowledged  queen,  although  mingling 
freely  with  her  subjects. 

Strange  freaks  had  been  played  among  these  hitherto 
slaves.  There,  for  example,  walked  a  tall,  straight  fellow, 
with  a  copper-colored  face,  piercing  black  eye,  high  cheek- 
bones, long,  straight  hair — all  unmistakable  signs  of  the 
Indian — and  so  strongly  marked  that  you  naturally  ex- 
jDCcted  to  hear  the  "  war-whoop."  There  were  the  arms,  the 
sweeping  legs,  the  long  stride,  and  the  restlessness  of  man- 
ner, which  fully  confirmed  one  in  the  belief  that  the  father  of 


174  A   YEAR   or    WRECK. 

this  man  must  have  been  a  full-blooded  Indian — perhaps 
some  chief  of  his  tribe,  from  the  dignity  about  the  fellow, 
and  his  capacity  to  command.  As  the  Colonel  told  me,  he 
was  one  of  his  orderly-sergeants,  and  a  splendid  executive 
oflScer.   But  there  was  the  unmistakable  negro  in  his  face,  too. 

And  there  stood  another  with  a  dark-brown  face,  but 
with  so  much  of  the  German  in  it,  and  his  whole  square- 
set  frame,  that  you  at  once  thought  of  cork-opera,  and  won- 
dered how  soon  he  would  take  his  negro  paint  oflP,  and  end 
his  disguise.  But  no — he  was  a  genuine  negro.  He  looked 
like  a  veritable  Bug  Gargle,  however,  with  his  square-set 
features  and  frame. 

Some  one  of  the  party  called  loudly  for  Sergeant  Hart, 
and  he  came  sputtering  to  the  front,  with  an  undoubted 
French  accent,  sidling  walk  and  small  figure.  He  sput- 
tered his  broken  French-English  out  so  rapidly  that  you 
could  scarcely  catch  a  word  he  said.  There  was  abundance 
of  fun  in  that  little  half-negro,  half-French  hide. 

Only  about  fifty  per  cent,  of  these  negroes  were  of  a 
simon-pure  black  material.  The  rest  were  badly  mixed,  and 
yet  they  were  all  slaves,  and  never  saw  the  cold  side  of 
Mason  and  Dixon's  line  ! 

Long  after  night  had  set  in,  I  wandered  down  upon  the 
lower  deck,  and  there  the  black  people  were  scattered  all 
about— now  on  bags  of  grain,  now  on  bales  of  hay,  and 
now  on  the  rough  deck,  with  only  a  stick  of  cord-wood  for 
a  pillow,  all  wrapped  in  slumber.  The  stars  shone  bright 
in  the  heavens,  glistening  on  many  an  up-turned  face,  as 
the  steamer  took  its  way  around  the  bends  of  the  river. 
The  paddle-wheels  pounded  the  water  in  a  monotonous 
measure,  which  sounded  a  lullaby  to  these  quiet  sleepers, 
and,  save  here  and  there  a  Avar-worn,  or  camp-worn  army- 
blanket  for  a  covering,  night  was  their  only  mantle.  In 
the  early  evening,  thus  grouped  about,  they  had  chanted 
their  rude  melodies,  which  were  so  many  cradle-songs  to 
these  grown  up  babes,  for  they  had  apparently  fallen  where 


JOURNEY  BACK  TO  HEBRON  PLANTATION,  ETC.    175 

slumber  overtook  them.  There  was  no  separation  of  sexes 
or  of  families.  There  had  been  song  or  camp-story,  then 
drowsiness,  and  then  sleep — and  here  they  lay,  all  shades 
and  hues,  telling  the  story  of  the  century  of  mixing,  in 
such  language  as  could  not  be  misinterpreted. 

And  yet  they  were  not  all  there.  I  missed  Jimmy  and 
his  beautiful  Mary.  They  were  no  where  to  be  seen. 
When  I  went  up  stairs  again,  as  I  was  promenading  on  the 
outside  of  the  cabin,  I  found  them.  There  were  two  chairs 
drawn  together,  and  here  was  JMary  fast  asleep  on  her  hus- 
band's shoulder  ! — his  ungainly  black  hand,  one  finger  of 
which  was  adorned  with  a  huge  brass  ring,  holding  tightly 
her  taper-fingers,  as  if  he  thought  her  all  but  an  angel 
that  might  fly  away  from  him  in  sleep,  and  would  thus 
hold  her  fast.  His  coarse  soldier-overcoat  covered  h&r 
bosom,  as  if  he  would  conceal  its  heaving  from  the  vulgai 
gaze,  and  his  faded  uniform  pillowed  her  head,  setting  off 
its  beauty  as  the  rustic  frame  sets  off  the  picture.  When 
the  shades  of  night  had  fallen,  this  uncouth  negro  man,  as 
if  fearing  harm  to  his  wife,  had  found  this  quiet  nest  for 
her,  and  there  he  sat,  his  bright  eyes  glancing  in  every 
direction,  and  only  occasionally  nodding  throngh  all  its 
watches,  while  she  slumbered  in  his  arms.  Here  again  her 
distinction  showed  itself.  Colored  passengers  on  the  up- 
per-guards, were  in  violation  of  all  rule,  so  this  pair  had 
taken  their  position  by  stealth,  but  as  no  one  complained 
of  them  they  were  allowed  to  remain,  and  they  would  re- 
turn to  their  companions  below  at  daybreak.  Money  at  this 
time  would  not  buy  negroes  a  place  on  the  upper  deck,  un- 
less they  appeared  there  as  maids  or  body-servants.  The 
rest  were  banished  to  the  regions  below,  with  the  mules, 
the  cattle,  and  the  freight.  And  yet,  from  the  shades 
among  those  on  that  lower  deck,  there  had  been  a  more  in- 
timate association  between  the  whites  and  blacks  than 
merely  of  treading  a  common  floor  ! 

In  course  of  time  we  reached  the  village  wharf-boat,  but 


176  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

the  stopping-place  for  the  Colonel's  expedition  was  three 
miles  above,  and,  remembering  our  fearful  and  expensive 
experience  of  having  our  outfit  landed  there,  and  how  the 
"  mischievous  boys "  sometimes  stampeded  the  labor  of 
the  new-comers,  it  was  arranged  that  our  negroes  also 
should  get  off  at  the  Colonel's  landing. 

After  breakfast  I  rode  up  to  the  Colonel's  place.  I  found 
him,  his  outfit  and  laborers  still  on  the  bank  at  the  landing, 
and  there  was  great  commotion  over  the  reception  they 
had  met.  It  seems  that  the  man  who  owned  the  plantation 
— or  rather,  who  held  the  title  to  it,  for  it  was  mortgaged  be- 
yond its  value — had  not  yet  returned  from  his  flight  to 
Texas;  that  he  had  two  agents,  one  at  Yicksburg  and  one 
at  the  village  landing  ;  that,  while  the  Yicksburg  agent 
had  rented  the  plantation  to  Col.  Cray  (this  was  the  Colo- 
nel's name)  the  village  agent  had  rented  it  to  Col.  Byron, 
an  old  resident  of  the  county,  who  had  already  taken  pos- 
session, and  was  at  work  with  a  half-dozen  hands  breaking 
up  the  ground.  Both  would-be  tenants  had  written  leases, 
but  Col.  Byron  was  in  possession,  and  declared  his  inten- 
tion of  remaining  at  all  hazards,  while  Col.  Gray  was  de- 
manding the  place  with  equal  warmth. 

The  two  agents  would  have  to  be  consulted,  and  there  was 
much  j)arley  ahead,  so  the  Colonel  concluded,  if  the  hands 
wished  to  do  so,  they  could  go  down  and  work  for  us,  until 
the  question  was  decided,  if  we  would  pay,  feed,  and  lodge 
them,  which  we  were  only  too  glad  to  agree  to.  They 
were  all  eager  to  get  to  work,  and  so,  after  they  had  cooked 
and  eaten  their  breakfast  on  the  river  bank,  all  declared 
their  readiness  to  start  off  to  the  Hebron  plantation.  The 
Colonel  detained  half  a  dozen  to  look  after  the  mules  and 
watch  his  property,  Jimmy  and  Mary  being  among  the 
number. 

When  I  arrived  at  his  camp,  Mary  was  preparing  the 
morning  meal  for  the  Colonel.  Jimmy  had  gotten  a  few 
bricks  together,  on  which  the  fire  was  built.      A  couple  of 


JOURNEY  BACK  TO  HEBRON  PLANTATION,  ETC.    177 

crotched  sticks,  driven  into  the  ground,  with  a  pole  across 
them,  served  as  a  crane,  where  the  pot  was  hung  to  boil  the 
coffee.  A  skillet,  with  a  cover  to  it,  sitting  on  a  bed  of 
coals,  and  its  top  covered  with  coals,  was  the  bake-oven, 
out  of  which  Mary  soon  took  some  splendid-looking  hot  bis- 
cuit, while  in  another  skillet,  without  a  cover,  the  pork  was 
being  fried,  and  in  still  another,  a  pone  of  hoe-cake  was 
just  taking  on  its  coat  of  brown.  Jimmy  had  improvised 
a  table  near  by,  in  the  shape  of  the  Colonel's  camp-chest,  on 
which  Mary  proceeded  to  set  tin  plates,  and  a  tin  cup  for 
coffee,  with  pewter  spoons,  iron  knives  and  forks,  tin  pep- 
per-box, and  salt-celler.  After  the  Colonel  had  eaten,  the 
table  was  again  set,  and  Mary  and  Jimmy  took  their  morn- 
ing meal,  Jimmy  devouring  the  corn  pone,  leaving  the 
flour  biscuit  for  Mary. 

While  the  breakfast  was  being  cooked,  the  smoke  seemed 
very  fond  of  Mary,  and  on  whichever  side  of  the  fire  she 
would  go,  it  followed  her,  filling  her  black  eyes  until  they 
ran  tears.  Her  sleeves  were  rolled  up,  and  her  dress 
looped,  so  as  to  get  around  easily,  and  thus,  at  her  morning 
task,  she  looked,  if  any  thing,  more  charming  than  the 
night  before.  Jimmy  hung  around  her,  ready  to  assist, 
apparently  happy  to  be  near  her.  When  the  fire  burned 
low,  he  would  get  down  on  all  fours  and  blow  it  into  a 
blaze  again,  and  as  fast  as  the  wood  burned  out,  he  sup- 
plied new  sticks,  hunting  about  on  the  river  bank  for  them. 
Was  a  bucket  of  water  wanted  ?  Jimmy  was  off  to  the  river 
for  it,  so  that  Mary  was  simply  the  executive  officer  of  the 
morning  meal,  as  Jimmy  performed  all  the  drudgery. 

"  Dat  darkey  is  pow'ful  choice  of  his  nigger,"  said  the 
negro  of  the  German  features,  "  he'll  spile  her  wid  his  pet- 
tin'."  But  Mary  seemed  to  appreciate  her  devoted  hus- 
band, and  was  constantly  showing  him  some  little  token  of 
affection.  She  certainly  looked  as  if  she  was  born  to 
"  spile  "  in  the  way  Jimmy  was  trying  it.  There  was  un- 
questionably good  Carolina  blood  running  in  the  veins  of 


178  A   YEAR   OP   WRECK. 

this  bleached  specimen  of  the  negro  race,  because  right 
here  he  was  reversing  the  negro  characteristic,  which 
makes  the  woman  the  dray-horse,  and  adopting  the  Anglo- 
Saxon  habit,  which  makes  her  rather  the  pet.  This  blood 
may  have  been  put  into  Jimmy's  veins  illegitimately — and 
it  was,  of  course — but  here  was  the  legitimate  inheritance 
of  some  polite  Carolina  planter  bestowing  itself  upon  one 
who  had  enough  white  blood  in  her  veins  to  fully  appre- 
ciate it ;  and  it  was  the  result  of  such  white  grafts  upon  these 
negro  stalks,  which  so  attracted  us.  It  was  like  finding 
the  notes  of  the  mocking-bird  issuing  from  the  throat  of 
a  crow.  In  other  words,  and  in  plain  English,  it  was  not 
the  negro  blood  in  the  veins  of  Jimmy  and  Mary  which 
was  informing  the  story  I  have  just  written  about  them,  but 
it  was  the  white  blood;  and  yet,  Jimmy  told  me  that  both 
his  own  and  Mary's  mother  were  as  "  black  as  de  ace  ob 
spades,"  and  he  told  me  further  who  his  own  and  Mary's 
fathers  were  ;  one  was  a  prominent  Carolina  planter,  and 
the  other  was  an  extensive  Mississippi  planter,  and  both 
of  them  had  been  in  Congress,  and  were  noted  politicians, 
intense  in  their  hatred  to  abolitionists  and  believers  in 
negro  equality. 

^' Dey  didn't  preach  what  dey  practiced,"  said  Jimmy, 
with  one  of  his  hearty  laughs  when  he  told  me  about  it. 

I  took  the  larger  portion  of  the  new  hands  down  into  the 
bramble-patches,  and  what  a  scattering  we  made  of  them ! 
It  was  plain  to  be  seen  that  these  men  and  women  had 
worked  in  brier  and  cane-brakes  before.  What  great 
heaps  they  piled  up,  and  the  bon-fires  we  made  that  first 
day  were  pleasant  to  look  upon.  We  scared  away  rabbits, 
coveys  of  quails,  and  opened  land  to  sunlight,  and  made  it 
ready  for  the  plow,  which  had  not  been  so  exposed,  or  in  a 
condition  to  plow,  for  years.  And  all  day  long  the  planta- 
tion resounded  with  rude  negro  melodies. 

Scarcely  had  I  reached  our  cabins  in  the  morning  with 
our  n^w  force,  when  the  square-built  negro  stepped  out  from 


JOURNEY   BACK   TO    HEBRON   PLANTATION,  ETC.         179 

the  crowd  and  said  he  would  like  to  lead  the  "  plow-gang." 
"  I's  used  to  dc  bizness,"  said  he ;  "  de  niggers  on  dis 
place  hab  done  pow'ful  loose  plowin',  I  seed  as  we  come'd 
along,  an  I'd  like  to  shoAV  you  what  a  cotton  furrow  is,  if 
you  please,  sah." 

I  told  him  to  detail  a  number  of  his  party  for  plowmen, 
and  gave  Billy  orders  to  put  the  same  number  of  old  hands, 
who  had  been  doing  the  "  loose  "  plowing,  into  the  trash- 
gang,  so  as  to  give  each  one  of  those  detailed  a  team,  which 
he  proceeded  to  do.  The  long-armed,  Indian-looking 
negro,  said  he  would  like  to  "  lead  de  trash-gang,  an  make 
de  briers  and  brambles  sick  ;  "  and  so,  after  the  square- 
built,  German  negro,  whose  name  was  Wash.,  had  selected 
what  he  wanted  for  plowmen,  we  turned  over  the  rest  to 
lieub.,  the  Indian  negro. 

Billy  was  wild  with  delight  at  our  prospect,  and  Clara 
said  : 

''  It  'pears  as  ef  Eeb  times  is  come  back  agin,  an  dis 
crowd  '11  work  de  free  niggers  down  to  de  bone,  in  jes  two 
days." 

And  indeed,  the  work  did  now  go  forward  rapidly.  The 
wire  edge  was  on,  and  such  clearings  as  they  made,  and 
such  plowing  as  they  did,  put  completely  to  shame  our  pre- 
vious shabby  work.  For  the  first  time,  we  really  had  help, 
and  yet  I  felt  it  to  be  only  temporary  relief, — perhaps  at 
most  only  for  a  week,  as  by  that  time  the  Colonel  would 
doubtless  get  the  place,  as  it  soon  became  known  that  the 
village  agent  was  not  really  so  much  of  an  agent  after  all. 
He  had  no  positive  instructions  to  rent  the  place,  had  only 
acted  on  the  ground  of  having  been  the  owner's  attorney 
before  the  war,  while  the  Yicksburg  agent  had  written  in- 
structions to  rent  it.  But  the  man  in  possession,  although 
without  legal  right,  had  nine  points  on  his  side,  and  then 
he  was  a  Southener,  which  knocked  the  beam  in  his  favor. 
The  Yicksburg  agent  made  a  show  of  anger  at  the  treat- 
ment which  his  lease  had  met,  while  the  village  lawyer  be- 


180  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

came  really  enraged,  insisting  that  Lis  client  should  re- 
main on  the  place,  and  so  Colonel  Gray  reluctantly  con- 
cluded to  give  up  the  fight,  although  at  one  time  ho 
decided  to  take  the  place  by  force  of  arms,  and  actually 
organized  his  men  for  that  j^urpose.  This  cruel  disap- 
pointment left  Colonel  Gray's  labor  and  outfit  on  his 
hands. 

The  sequel  of  this  story  was,  that  Byron  did  not  make 
any  crop  and  could  not  pay  his  rent,  and  the  owner  of  the 
place  undertook  to  make  Colonel  Gray  legally  responsible 
for  his  contract  with  the  Yicksburg  agent,  and  to  collect  the 
rent  from  him. 

Colonel  Gray  thought  seriously  of  moving  his  force  to  a 
plantation  in  another  part  of  the  country  which  he  said  he 
had  the  refusal  of.  If  any  part  of  the  force  he  had  brought 
should  go  away  with  him  we  were  satisfied  they  would 
all  go,  which  would  of  course  leave  us  in  the  lurch,  and,  it 
being  so  late  in  the  season,  we  should  certainly  have  to 
give  up  our  planting  enterprise.  So,  in  order  to  get  his 
labor,  we  entered  into  negotiations  with  him  which  ended 
as  follows  :  We  took  his  outfit,  costing  thirty-five  hundred 
dollars,  off  his  hands,  paying  him  the  cash  for  it ;  con- 
tracted to  give  him  all  the2:)rofits  which  should  be  made  on 
fifty  acres  of  our  Hebron  plantation  ;  to  allow  him  to  fit 
up  and  run  our  saw-mill,  at  joint  expense— we  to  advance 
the  money  for  the  same — the  profits  to  be  shared  equally : 
we  to  make  no  charge  for  the  trees;  we  to  work  his 
fifty  acres  j  List  as  we  worked  our  own,  all  in  common  ; 
also  to  pay  him  at  the  rate  of  fifteen  hundred  dollars 
a  year  to  act  as  a  sort  of  assistant  manager,  and  to 
give  him  a  sixty-days'  leave  of  absence  to  go  home  and 
visit  his  family,  during  which  time  he  was  to  be  under 

pay. 

This  seemed  like  a  hard  bargain  for  us,  but  his  laborers 
we  must  have  ;  and  the  idea  was  that  their  Colonel  would 
be  able  to  get  all  the  work  out  of  them  which  was  in  them. 


JOURNEY  BACK  TO  HEBRON  PLANTATION,  ETC.    181 

It  was  sometime  before  wo  could  get  him  to  agree  to  enter- 
tain a  proposition  from  us,  so  fully  was  he  wedded  to  the 
idea  of  i)lanting  himself.  But  when,  finally,  after  much  per- 
suasion, he  agreed  to  do  so,  it  was  clearly  to  be  seen,  by  his 
manner,  that  he  fully  realized  the  fortune  he  had  in  his  labor, 
and  made  up  his  mind  to  work  this  mine  for  all  there  was  in 
it,  and  so  he  drove  us  from  one  valuable  provision  in  his 
favor  to  another,  until  we  were  almost  crazed  when  we 
thought  what  would  be  the  result  of  it  all.  Of  course  here 
was,  at  best,  an  enormous  increase  in  the  Dobson  estimate 
of  expense  for  the  year,  and  here  were  the  revenues  of  fifty 
acres  to  be  taken  from  the  credit  side  of  the  account. 
These  last  blows  to  the  Dobson  statement  placed  it  beyond 
recognition.  But  there  was  no  turning  back,  and  so  we 
tried  to  console  ourselves  with  the  idea  that  his  outfit  had 
been  bought  cheap  for  cash.  The  mules,  the  principal 
item  of  expense,  we  knew  to  be  particularly  cheap,  because 
we  had  helped  the  Colonel  purchase  them  inYicksburg; 
the  provisions  we  should  need  for  our  current  use  ;  we  thus 
hoped  to  get  rid  of  the  outfit  part  of  our  bargain  without  a 
great  loss.  As  for  the  saw-mill,  we  had  great  expectations 
from  it,  although  no  profits  from  this  source  had  been  con- 
sidered in  the  Dobson  estimate.  It  seemed,  to  want  but 
little  in  the  way  of  repairs,  and  there  were  our  two  hundred 
acres  of  woodland,  with  its  valuable  timber,  which  Hamp- 
son  had  dwelt  upon.  Perhaps,  with  reasonable  manage- 
ment, the  sawing  would  give  us  back  the  profits  on  the 
fifty  acres  which  were  to  go  to  Colonel  Gray,  as  well  as 
help  to  make  up  some  of  the  other  items  of  unexpected  ex- 
pense which  had  weekly  confronted  us.  It  might  be  that 
Dobson  had  not  said  any  thing  about  the  profits  from  the 
saw-mill  in  his  estimate,  because  he  knew  there  would,  of 
necessity,  be  unexpected  items  of  expense  which  the  "  lag- 
?H'<7^e  "  of  the  saw-mill  would  make  good.  Colonel  Gray 
was  an  old  lumberman,  and  while  just  now  he  seemed  to 
have  by  far  the  best  of  us  in  the  trade,  j^erhaps  the  utiliz* 


182  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

ing  of  his  former  experience  would  open  up  to  us  an  un- 
expected source  of  profit,  and  our  more  than  liberal  con- 
cessions to  bim  migbt  3'et  put  money  in  our  pockets.  It 
was  so  like  buman  nature  while  the  prospects  for  cotton 
profits  were  dwindling,  to  reach  out  for  something  else  to 
bang  hope  upon,  even  though  it  was  that  uncertain  pro- 
duct, a  saw-mill ! 


CHAPTER  XXXIY. 

ADJUTANT   JOHNSON   RETURNS   WITH   REINFORCEMENTS. 

One  afternoon,  while  yet  in  the  midst  of  the  task  of  or- 
ganizing the  feeding  and  the  division  into  squads  of  our 
new  force,  the  hoarse  whistle  of  a  steamboat  sounded  for 
our  landing,  and  when  I  galloped  down  to  the  river  bank, 
I  found  Adjutant  Johnson  disembarking  with  a  crowd  of 
some  twenty  negroes  and  two  white  men. 

"  I  am  here  at  last,"  be  said,  with  an  attempt  at  spright- 
liness,  as  I  greeted  bim;  but  there  were  the  quavering 
voice,  the  staggering  gait,  and  the  sunken  eye,  still  more 
apparent  than  when  1  had  so  reluctantly  said  good-bye  to 
bim,  and  his  wan  appearance  shocked  me  beyond  measure. 
Disease  had  indeed  been  busily  at  work  on  his  feeble  frame 
during  bis  long  and  toilsome  journey. 

As  if  noticing  my  painful  expression  of  face,  and  divin- 
ing the  cause  to  be  himself,  he  continued  : 

"  Only  a  little  banged  up  by  the  journey;  I'll  be  all 
right  after  a  night's  rest." 

And  then  be  introduced  me  to  the  two  white  men  ;  one 
was  an  engineer  I  bad  sent  for,  and  the  other  "  is  to  act  as 
my  assistant  until  I  get  stronger,"  said  the  invalid. 

"Better  get  him  onto  a  bed  as  soon  as  we  can,"  whis- 


JOHNSON    RETURNS    WITH    REINFORCEMENTS.  183 

pered  the  assistant  in  ray  ear.  "  He  has  had  a  succes- 
sion of  bad  turns  since  we  commenced  our  journey,  and  is 
really  very  low.  I  begged  him  not  to  dress,  but  he  insisted 
upon  doing  so,  saying  he  did  n't  want  to  be  taken  off  the 
steamboat  on  a  litter  like  an  invalid — he  wanted  to  look 
upon  the  plantation  so  dear  to  him,  standing  on  his  legs 
like  a  man,  and  not  with  his  face  to  the  sky  ;  and  he  was 
particularly  anxious  to  see  the  twinkle  of  your  eyes,  Mr. 
Harding,  when  they  should  rest  on  his  reinforcement." 

It  was  very  difficult  to  induce  him  to  take  my  horse  and 
ride  to  the  quarters ;  and,  indeed  he  at  first  refused  posi- 
tively to  do  so,  declaring  that  he  could  "  walk  as  well  as 
any  one"  (it  was  three-quarters  of  a  mile  !)  It  was  only 
when  I  resorted  to  a  little  deception,  telling  him  I  wanted 
to  walk  alongside  of  his  assistant,  and  get  the  home  news — 
would  he  oblige  me  by  riding  my  horse — that  I  gained  his 
consent;  and  then  I  lifted  him  upon  the  horse,  and  when 
we  reached  the  quarters  he  dropped  from  the  saddle  into  my 
arms,  so  exhausted  that  he  almost  went  into  a  swoon.  We 
carried  him  to  the  house  and  placed  him  on  the  bed,  where 
he  lay  for  several  hours  without  opening  his  eyes,  and 
with  only  the  faintest  thread  of  a  pulse. 

He  had  made  the  long  journey ;  had  brought  us  rein- 
forcements ;  the  excitement  was  over — this  was  the  re- 
action. When  you  consider  what  this  invalid  had  accom- 
plished, you  could  not  but  exclaim  "  Here  lies  a  hero  !" 

AYe  gave  him  in  charge  of  "  Ole  Clara,"  and  thencefor- 
ward, until  he  bade  adieu  to  "Hebron"  she  was  his  constant 
nurse ;  and  no  babe  was  ever  cared  for  with  greater  tender- 
ness. Of  course  our  invalid  rallied.  The  nature  of  the 
disease  was  one  of  "  ups  and  downs."  He  wrestled  manfully 
with  Death,  and  sometimes  it  looked,  ever  so  faintly,  as  if 
he  were  going  to  get  the  best  of  him  ;  but  it  was  only  the 
flicker  of  the  candle  in  the  socket,  at  each  recurrence 
burning  feebler.  So  great  was  his  will  that  he  was  not 
yet  "  bed-bound."     Sometimes,  when  I  reached  the  plan- 


184  A    YEAR   OF    'WRECK. 

tation  in  the  morning,  I  would  find  him  dressed  and  sit- 
ting in  his  rocking-chair,  with  Clara  hovering  near  him, 
and  once  or  twice  I  actually  found  him  leaning  on  his 
cane,  staggering  about  the  yard  almost  like  a  drunken 
man,  and  when  I  remonstrated  with  him  he  would  reply  : 
"  I  must  take  exercise  in  order  to  regain  my  strength  ;  I  am 
no  possible  account  to  any  one  now.  I  want  to  hurry  and 
get  better  !"  On  the  part  of  Clara,  there  grew  up  the  af- 
fection of  mother  for  child.  The  good  old  soul  had  never 
experienced  the  sj^ring  of  maternal  affection  quickening  into 
life  through  a  child  of  her  own,  and  now  it  burst  forth 
with  all  the  power  of  a  long  pent-up  stream.  It  was  the 
old  story  of  the  barren  woman  yearning,  during  many 
years,  for  "  bone  of  her  bone  and  flesh  of  her  flesh,"  and 
not  finding  it;  but  having,  instead,  the  flood-gates  of  her 
maternal  affection  at  last  opened  by  a  key  in  the  hand  of 
some  chance  waif,  onl}-,  in  her  state  of  ignorance,  it  seemed 
rather  the  affection  of  the  bear  for  the  cub.  Yes,  indeed, 
Clara  would  have  torn  flesh,  scratched  out  eyes,  if  any  one 
had  dared  approach  her  ^'  chile  "  other  than  in  the  gentlest 
manner. 

"  Dis  chile  is  as  dear  to  me  as  the  apple  o'  my  eye ;  he 
'longs  to  hebben,  an'  if  ole  Clara  holes  on  to  the  hem  o' 
his  garment  hell  pull  her  smack  into  the  presence  o'  Je- 
sus. One  night,  when  Clara  was  praying  on  the  gallery, 
an'  askin'  Jesus  to  'store  her  chile  to  helf,  de  angel  o'  the 
Lo'd  'peared  to  her  and  said  :  '  Clara  !  dat's  your  chile ;  Je- 
sus gibs  him  to  you — take  him  Clara.  He  's  one  of  the 
Lo'd's  'n'inted  !' " 

Some  one  asked  her  how  the  angel  looked.  "  Jes  like  a 
white  man;  and  did  n't 'pear  to  hab  the  leas'  preducZiSS 
agin  me  on  'count  o'  my  black  skin." 

There  were  two  articles  of  diet  quite  essential  to  the  in- 
valid, namely  :  fresh  meat  and  milk.  It  did  not  seem  pos- 
sible to  get  either ;  but  love  was  in  the  heart  of  old  Clara, 
that  love  which  is  ever  fruitful  in  resource,  the  love  of  the 


JOHNSON   RETURNS    WITH   REINFORCEMENTS.  185 

mother  for  the  child.  Clara,  with  her  own  hands,  built  a 
quail-trap,  and  placed  it  on  the  edge  of  a  cane-brake. 
She  was  rewarded,  on  going  to  her  trap  the  following 
morning,  by  finding  eight  nice,  plump  quails  as  prisoners. 
When  she  brought  them  into  the  quarters,  her  black  face 
was  beaming  with  delight ;  she  cried,  in  a  loud  voice  : 

"  De  Lo'd  has  'warded  ole  Clara." 

This  was  the  commencement ;  and  always,  after  that, 
she  kejDt  something  fresh  on  hand — now  a  meadow-lark, 
now  a  squirrel,  now  a  duck,  and  occasionally  a  slice  of 
venison,  which  she  would  either  beg  or  buy  fi'om  "the 
boys,"  as  they  brought  them  in  from  their  evening  or  Sat- 
urday afternoon  hunt — this  when  her  invalid  would  tire 
of  quail,  which  were  always  to  be  had  for  the  snaring. 

"  Dar  was  a  fellow-s'a'vant  back  on  de  plantation  'bout 
eight  miles  from  here — de  plantation  I  use  to  'long  to — 
wid  some  goats.  If  I  could  get  out  dar  I  might  get  one 
of  um  wid  a  kid,  which  ud  gib  my  chile  'bundance  o' 
milk." 

So  the  old  soul  trudged  off  bright  and  early  one  morn- 
ing, on  foot  and  alone,  and  the  evening  of  the  same  day  she 
came  back,  leading  a  she-goat,  with  its  kid  in  her  arms,  say- 
ing, "  I  gist  borried  it."  And  so  the  two  essentials  were 
supplied,  and  under  this  generous  diet  her  "  chile  "  seemed 
to  thrive. 

Fifteen  of  the  negroes  Adjutant  Johnson  had  brought 
were  assigned  to  the  different  squads,  which  left  us  a  surplus 
of  five.  We  told  our  village  merchant  we  had  some  surplus 
hands,  and  asked  him  to  spread  the  news  among  the  plant- 
ers needing  help,  which  he  did,  and  within  twenty -four 
hours  we  had  a  dozen  aj^plicants  for  them.  We  let  one 
man  have  them  all,  he  promising  "  gladly  "  to  reimburse 
us  for  our  outlay,  which  he  never  did,  though  we  dunned 
him  repeatedly. 


186  A    YEAR   OF    WRECK. 


CHAPTER  XXXY. 


DE   BERRY    LARGE. 


One  morning,  after  things  had  commenced  running  along 
smoothly  under  our  new  force,  I  invited  Mrs.  Harding  and 
the  children  to  join  me  in  a  ride  to  the  plantation,  with  a 
triple  view  of  showing  off  our  new  labor,  giving  my  family 
an  airing,  and  arranging  for  a  Sabbath-school  on  the  fol- 
lowing Sunday. 

We  all  crowded  into  one  little  single-seated  buggy — one 
of  the  boys  between  us,  and  one  on  a  cushioned  stool  at 
our  feet — and  drove  off  in  high  glee,  taking  care  not  to 
trespass  on  our  neighbor's  yard,  so  as  to  bring  down  her 
wrath  for  the  second  time. 

It  was  a  charming  morning,  and  as  we  drove  up  the  levee 
birds  filled  the  air  with  their  varied  notes.  Conspicuous 
among  these  was  the  French  mocking-bird.  What  a  world 
of  loveliness  is  concentrated  in  this  bird !  In  grace  and 
beauty  it  is  to  birds  what  the  deer  is  to  beasts,  but  one  is 
lost  when  he  attempts  to  find  a  comparison  for  its  music. 
They  were  flying  all  about  us,  at  least  half  a  dozen,  at  once 
flying  and  singing.  They  seemed  to  be  intoxicated  with 
joy,  as  they  flapped  along  lazily  in  the  air,  now  shutting 
their  wings,  until  they  almost  dropped  to  the  ground,  and 
then  lifting  themselves  up  again,  by  a  few  long  swoops,  trac- 
ing a  succession  of  curved  lines.  They  could  do  nothing 
that  did  not  seem  beautiful,  and,  when  it  was  their  mood 
to  cease  their  flight,  using  at  once  their  long  sweej^ing 
tail  and  wings,  so  as  to  let  themselves  down  lightly ;  then 
throwing  the  former  up  over  their  backs,  and  with  a  most 
bewitching  turn  of  the  head  looking  at  you,  as  if  to  say  : 
"How  do  you  like  that?" — all  the  time  continuing  their 


"DE   BERRY-LARGE."  187 

song,  showing  that  singing  is  with  them  involuntary.  In 
their  sober  slate-colors,  with  their  lithe  little  bodies,  how 
they  surpass  every  thing  else  of  the  bird  species,  however 
gay  its  plumage  !  If  all  could  see  the  mocking-bird  in  its 
natural  state,  it  would  no  longer  be  imprisoned — the  doors 
of  cages  would  be  thrown  open,  and  this  bird  of  haj^pi- 
ness  and  song  would  be  allowed  to  fly  out  and  away  into 
congenial  latitudes. 

Sing  on,  sweet  bird  !  My  love  for  you  was  love  at  first 
sight,  but  how  much  more  I  grew  to  love  you  as  I  knew 
you  better  in  the  years  which  followed  !  You  have  cheered 
me  in  my  waking  midnight  hours  by  the  song  from  your  nest 
in  the  vine  under  my  window.  You  come  back  to  us  in  the 
spring-time,  after  the  briefest  absence,  to  sing  the  old  songs 
again,  during  all  the  spring,  summer,  and  autumn  seasons. 
You  trust  me  by  rearing  your  young  where  my  hands  could 
reach  them  without  the  aid  of  ladder.  You  have  been  my 
companion  in  the  long  summer  months,  when  the  dog-star 
reigned,  and  companionship,  if  it  was  of  human  kind,  had 
fled  to  the  Xorth— if  it  was  bird  or  beast,  had  sought  the 
densest  shade.  Then  you  would  show  yourself,  scarcely 
moving  in  the  air,  hardly  flapping  you  wings,  lazily,  now 
perching  on  the  chimney -tops,  or  uttermost  pinnacle  of  the 
roof,  now  on  a  bush,  now  in  the  roadway,  panting  under 
the  noon -day  sun,  but  never  hiding  from  it — breathing 
out  your  songs  through  the  pug's  of  heat,  and  ever  the 
very  picture  of  happiness.  These  birds  seem  the  veriest 
salamanders,  and  save  for  their  panting  breath,  which  has 
something  of  the  human  in  it,  as  has  every  thing  they  do, 
one  would  suppose  they  shed  sun  and  heat  as  their  feathers 
do  rain.  While  full  of  industry,  they  are  yet  birds  of 
pleasure.  In  their  nest-building,  in  seeking  food  for  their 
young,  in  their  flight,  in  rest,  and  in  song,  there  is  an  air 
of  luxury  and  nobility  about  them — it  touches  every  thing 
they  do.  Their  true  home  is  in  the  South,  and  j^et  they 
are  no  respecters  of  persons  !     And  we  loved  them  for  that> 


188  A    YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

for  it  was  something  to  find  even  a  bird  in  this  country,  in 
those  days,  which  was  not  prejudiced  against  the  new- 
comer ! 

When  we  finally  reached  the  j^lantation  there  was  much 
staring  in  the  quarters,  among  the  "  aunties,"  at  "  de  Yan- 
kee wife." 

^'  Jes  like  odder  'omen,  for  all  de  world,"  said  one. 

I  seated  Mrs.  Harding  in  the  store-room,  and  one  after 
another  of  the  "  aunties  "  dropped  in  to  call  ujDon  her. 
Clara  acted  as  hostess,  and  introduced  each  one.  On  the 
part  of  each  "  aunty "  there  would  be  the  hand-shake, 
and,  accompanying  it,  a  courtesy,  such  as  one  sees  dropped 
by  school -girls  when  coming  upon  the  stage  to  read  a  com- 
position. This  was  their  invariable  habit.  How  did  they 
come  by  it  ? 

One,  aunt  Martha,  a  mulatto  woman,  with  soft,  creamy 
skin,  was  introduced. 

Mrs.  Harding  noticed  some  blotches  on  her  face,  and,  her 
countenance  beaming  with  kindly  solicitude,  asked  her 
what  they  meant. 

"  Dey  say  I's  got  de  berry -large,"  she  replied,  as  if  it  were 
the  most  natural  thing  in  the  world  to  have,  and  one  at 
which  no  one  should  be  surj)rised  or  alarmed. 

I  heard  her  reply,  and  looked  around,  and  there,  sure 
enough,  was  a  well-developed  case  of  small-pox,  and  my 
wife  had  been  shaking  hands  with  it — and  there  she  stood 
aghast,  as  she  contemplated  the  full  extent  of  her  expos- 
ure. I  took  her  and  the  children  away  from  the  planta- 
tion as  fast  as  wheels  could  carry  us,  with  the  full  con- 
viction that  we  had  a  long  siege  of  this  fearful  contagion 
before  us. 

Aunt  Martha  was  down  with  a  raging  fever  the  follow- 
ing day,  and  so  Dobson  had  a  cabin  fixed  up  in  the  quar- 
ters, just  across  the  road  from  the  ofl&ce,  and  at  about  three 
rods  distance,  as  a  small-pox  hospital,  and  here,  for  over  two 
months,  we  had  an  average  of  from  one  to  eight  cases,  with 


now   CONTRACTS   WERE   KEPT.  189 

some  five  deaths  during  its  prevalence,'  among  which  was 
that  of  the  white  engineer  Adjutant  Johnson  had  brought 
with  him. 

The  small-pox  was  a  legacy  of  Yicksburg  and  soldier 
life,  and  had  been  brought  up  by  our  new  force.  Before  it 
had  run  its  course,  fully  one-third  of  these  were  marked  by 
it,  and  before  the  epidemic  was  over  I  became  a  thorough 
adept  in  the  treatment  of  small-pox. 


CHAPTER  XXXYL 


HOW   CONTRACTS    WERE    KEPT. 


About  the  middle  of  April  we  began  to  think  about  get- 
ting our  cotton-seed  upon  the  plantation,  ready  for  plant- 
ing. We  should  have  to  haul  it  some  four  miles,  over  a 
very  bad  road,  which  would  take  at  least  three  days. 
Accordingly,  I  addressed  a  note  to  the  gentleman  with 
whom  we  had  previously  contracted,  asking  him  to  deliver 
the  seed  to  the  bearer,  and  placed  the  same  in  the  hands  of 
Billy,  who  started  off  with  our  two  teams. 

The  teams  returned  in  about  three  hours,  the  wagons 
empty,  with  a  message  from  the  gentleman  that  he  had  no 
seed  for  us ! 

I  sent  Billy  back  with  another  note,  recalling  our  pur- 
chase of  seed  on  the  wharf-boat,  thinking  it  possible  he 
might  have  forgotten  it,  and  with  a  view  of  refreshing  his 
memory  ;    but  Billy  again  returned  with  the  same  answer. 

The  next  day  I  met  the  man  in  the  village,  and  asked 
him  what  it  all  meant.  He  said  he  had  been  disappointed 
in  his  seed,  and  was  sorry  to  have  to  break  his  contract. 
I  mildly  suggested  that,  as  he  had  contracted  to  furnish 


190  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

US  all  the  cotton-seed  we  might  need  for  planting,  without 
any  proviso,  it  was  his  duty  to  do  so.  He  replied,  in  sub- 
stance, that  was  not  the  way  Southern  people  did  business ; 
when  they  made  contracts  they  were  in  the  habit  of  carry- 
ing them  out,  if  perfectly  convenient — it  was  not  perfectly 
convenient  for  him,  and  this  must  be  the  end  of  it.  And 
then  he  rode  off  with  the  air  of  a  man  who  had  rather 
done  a  favor,  than  one  who  had  just  broken  a  contract, 
which  would  involve  us  in  untold  expense. 

Here  was  a  perfectly  clear  case  of  breach  of  contract, 
but  it  was  also  just  as  clear  that  we  should  have  to  swal- 
low it ;  and  so  we  set  to  work  immediately  scouring  the 
country  for  cotton-seed,  visiting,  among  other  places,  Mem- 
phis and  Yicksburg,  but  finding  every-where  the  desirable, 
healthy  seed  already  purchased,  so  that  we  had  to  take 
what  was  left,  and  for  some  of  this  poor,  half-rotten  stuff 
we  had  to  pay  a  dollar  and  a  half  a  bushel. 

This  failure  to  get  what  we  had  purchased  cost  us  from  a 
thousand  to  fifteen  hundred  dollars,  to  say  nothing  of  the 
loss  of  crop  by  having  to  plant  poor  seed. 

While  we  were  yet  seeking  far  and  wide  for  seed,  smart- 
ing under  the  consequences  of  the  broken  contract,  and 
fearing  that  much  of  that  which  we  were  purchasing  would 
never  germinate  plants  at  all,  while  but  little  of  it  would 
produce  any  thing  but  sickly  stalks  ;  fearing  that  we  were 
in  a  measure  ruined,  but  feeling  ourselves  to  be  powerless 
to  secure  legal  redress — in  the  midst  of  all  this,  a  bill  was 
presented  to  us  for  rent  of  the  house  we  were  living  in, 
made  out  at  the  rate  of  a  thousand  dollars  a  year,  when, 
according  to  our  understanding,  the  outside  price  was  eight 
hundred  dollars. 

I  pocketed  the  bill  and  rode  over  to  the  office  of  the  at- 
torney who  had  sent  it  with  a  view  of  exjDlaining  to  him 
my  understanding,  viz.:  that  the  rent  was  to  be  at  the  rate 
of  a  thousand  dollars  a  year  (the  owner  had  said  eight 
hundred  to  a  thousand,  and  I  had  decided  that  he  would 


COTTON   PLANTING.  191 

charge  tho  outside  figure)— two  hundred  to  be  allowed  for 
repairs ;  claiming,  moreover,  that  I  had  already  spent  a 
hundred  and  fifty  dollars  of  this  latter  amount,  while  there 
was  much  yet  to  do. 

I  found  the  owner  of  the  house  at  the  office  of  his  attor- 
ney. He  insisted  that  he  had  said  a  thousand  dollars  a 
year  rent,  and  that  he  would  allow  us  to  put  on  two  hun- 
dred dollars'  worth  of  repairs  ! 

I  simply  said  in  reply  :  ''  I  have  stated  the  contract  cor- 
rectly, but  let  it  go ;  I  will  pay  the  bill.  I  have  never  had 
a  law-suit,  and  don't  propose  to  begin  now.  It  is  only  an- 
other charge  to  our  experience  account,  which,"  I  added, 
not  a  little  bitterly,  "  is  already  a  very  large  one  in  our 
new  home.     We  are  being  welcomed  with  a  vengeance." 

^  The  owner's  "  understanding  "  was  so  preposterous,  and 
his  attorney  saw  so  clearly  that  I  perfectly  understood  wo 
were  being  fleeced,  that  he  said  : 

"  Gentlemen,  in  view  of  this  unfortunate  misunderstand- 
ing, I  would  suggest  that  you  split  the  difference  in  dis- 
pute, and  make  the  rent  nine  hundred  dollars."  I  thanked 
the  lawyer  for  so  much  relief,  paid  the  account,  and  de- 
parted, a  wiser,  a  poorer,  and,  if  possible,  a  more  intensely 
disgusted  man. 


CHAPTEE  XXXYII. 

COTTON   PLANTING. 


There  are  eras  in  all  enterprises,  as  in  the  lives  of  all  in- 
dividuals. In  a  railroad  enterprise,  it  is  the  first  or  last 
rail  that  is  spiked  down  by  the  president  and  directors,  in 
the  presence  of  an  assembled  company,  and  with  much 
ceremony.     In  that  of  a  public  building,  it  is  the  laying  of 


192  A   YEAR   OF   -WRECK. 

the  corner-stone,  which  calls  together  a  vast  assemblage, 
with  music,  guns,  speech-making,  and  a  silver  trowe" 
in  the  gloved  hand  of  the  "  master  mason."  In  that  of  the 
steamshij),  it  is  when  the  keel  is  laid,  and  again  when  the 
vessel  glides  for  the  first  time  into  the  water.  The  plant- 
ing of  the  cotton-seed  might  well  be  regarded  as  a  cor- 
responding era  in  our  Southern  plantation  enterprise. 
Eut  to  me,  as  the  reader  may  readily  believe,  after  the 
long  series  of  obstacles  and  discouragements  of  one  kind 
or  another  recorded  in  these  chapters,  its  approach  was 
not  calculated  to  suggest  occasion  for  any  great  display 
of  enthusiasm.  It  was  Mrs.  Dobson,  who  had  seen  only 
the  rosy  side  of  plantation  life,  and  was  therefore  filled 
with  its  poetry,  to  whom  it  occurred  that  the  dropping  of 
the  first  cotton-seed  into  the  ground  should  be  accompa- 
nied with  befitting  ceremony. 

I  do  not  know  that  the  thing  was  suggested  in  so  many 
Words,  but  the  generaHclea  seemed  to  be  that,  if  possible, 
a  band  of  music  and  a  gun  would  be  proper  on  the  oc- 
casion— that  the  music  should  strike  up  and  the  gun  should 
boom  simultaneously  with  the  casting  of  the  first  seed. 
Music  and  a  gun,  however,  were  of  course  out  of  the  ques- 
tion; and,  as  I  had  long  since  had  all  the  poetry  of  plan- 
tation life  pressed  out  of  me,  under  my  trying  ordeal  of 
getting  labor,  organizing  it,  etc.,  was  it  any  wonder  that  I 
had  neither  any  ambition  nor  heart  for  display  ?  But 
there  was  a  melancholy  pleasure  in  knowing  that  at  least 
one  of  our  party  could  still  enjoy  that  which  was  to  plant- 
ing what  the  last  spike  in  the  last  rail,  or  the  laying  of  the 
corner-stone,  were  to  the  enterprises  associated  with  them. 
It  was  arranged  therefore,  that  we  should  all  ride  up  to 
the  plantation  in  our  buggies,  and  that  precisely  at  half- 
past  one,  on  the  afternoon  of  April  the  twentieth,  Mrs. 
Dobson  should  drop  the  first  seed. 

The  moment  came,  and  Uncle  "Wash  had  every  thing 
ready ;  but  an  hour  passed  by  without  the  Dobsous  makiog 


COTTON   CULTIVATION.  193 

their  appearance.  Our  whole  force  was  organized  as  a 
planting  squad.  They  could  plant  ten  acres  every  hour. 
The  season  was  very  late — we  should  have  been  through 
planting  a  week  ago.  Hands  and  mules  became  impatient 
at  the  delay,  and  finally  Uncle  Wash,  said,  "I  declaar  1 
can  't  wait  nary  nodder  minute ;  ef  dis  crap  is  gwine  to  be 
planted,  we  'd  better  git  at  it,  and  not  wait  any  longer  for 
foolish  doin's." 

So  I  told  him  to  push  ahead,  and  Aunt  Martha — she 
of  "de  berry  large" — instead  of  Mrs.  Dobson,  '- drapped 
de  fust  seed." 

Uncle  "Wash,  had  about  five  acres  planted  when  the 
Dobsons  arrived.  For  once,  at  least,  Dobson  had  made 
l)eople  wait  for  him  too  long,  and  disappointed  his  wife  in 
consequence.  I  felt  sorry  for  her,  as  she  had  evidently  set 
her  heart  upon  commemorating  this  era  in  our  history  as 
cotton-planters. 

A  week  later,  Hebron  was  all  planted,  and,  before  the 
last  seed  was  in  the  ground,  our  first  afternoon's  planting 
had  S2:)routed,  and  was  showing  itself,  just  peeping  through 
the  surface  of  the  ground — a  green  band  on  top  of  the 
cotton-bed,  about  three  inches  wide,  and  as  thick  as  "  do 
haar  on  de  dog's  back,"  to  use  Uncle  Wash.'s  expression. 


CHAPTER  XXXYIII. 

COTTON   CULTIVATION. 

When  the   cotton-plant   first  shows  itself,  it  has  two 
round  leaves,  varying  from  the  size  of  a  nickel  to  that  of  a 
half  dollar,  according  to   the   richness   of  the   soil,  with 
9 


194  A   YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

a  stem  like  the  dandelion's,  and  about  the  tiiickness  of  a 
rye-straw.  When  it  has  reached  a  healthy  growth,  it  is 
"  hip-high,"  and  from  that  to  a  height  which  will  hide  a  man 
on  horse-back,  in  shape,  it  is  not  unlike  the  althea  shrub, 
and  their  blossoms  are  also  similar.  A  "  stand '"'  of  cotton 
is  not  less  than  a  hundred  little  plants  to  every  one  which 
will  finally  be  left  to  make  the  last  "  stand  "  on  which  the 
crop  is  grown,  the  ninety-nine  being  cut  away  in  the  va- 
rious early  processes  of  cultivation,  or  destroyed  by  the  ex- 
cessive rains  flooding  the  country  and  thus  drowning  them 
out,  or  by  hailstorms  cutting  them  to  pieces,  or  by  unexpect- 
edly late  frosts,  or  by  their  rusting  at  the  trunk  and  then 
rotting  away,  or  by  their  being  eaten  by  lice — these  insects, 
as  well  as  the  rust,  being  the  product  of  cold  rains  ;  and  it 
is  to  guard  against  these  contingencies  that  the  seed  is  de- 
posited so  thickly,  in  order  that  when  this  little,  delicate, 
sickly  plant  shall  have  encountered  any  or  all  of  its  ene- 
mies, the  mortality  can  not  be  so  great  but  that  there  will 
be  at  least  stalks  enough  alive  to  make  the  required  final 
"  stand  "  of  a  single  one,  from  fourteen  to  twenty-four  inches 
apart.  Of  course,  if  the  little  plant  does  not  encounter  all 
or  any  of  the  above-named  enemies,  as  many  of  the  ex- 
cess as  are  left  standing  are  finally  taken  out  by  the 
plow  and  hoe,  in  process  of  cultivating.  The  manner  of 
cultivating  cotton  is  briefly  as  follows :  First,  a  furrow 
thrown  away  from  the  cotton  (the  rows  are  from  four  to 
six  feet  apart),  by  means  of  a  single  cultivating  plow — this 
is  called  "barring;"  second,  a  plow-like  instrument, 
called  a  *'  scraper,"  follows  on  either  side  of  the  cotton- 
row,  throwing  the  earth  away  from  it,  skimming  along  the 
surface,  thus  scraping  away  weeds  and  cotton-plants,  leav- 
ing only  a  narrow  strip  of  cotton,  from  an  inch  to  an  inch 
and  a  half  wide — this  is  called  "scraping,"  and  is  an  aid  to 
the  hoe,  doing  at  least  two-thirds  of  its  work ;  third,  then 
comes  the  "hoe-gang,"  "bunching"  the  cotton — that  is, 
cutting  away  all  the  plants,  excepting  a  bunch  of  from 


COTTON    CULTIVATION.  195 

three  to  five  stalks  in  a  place,  each  bunch  from  fourteen  to 
twenty-four  inches  apart ;  fourth,  the  plow  again  is  used, 
this  time  throwing  the  earth  towards  the  cotton — this  is 
called  "dirting,"  and  ever  after  the  earth  is  thrown  in  the 
same  direction.  The  hoes  again  follow  the  plows,  this  time 
cutting  away  all  the  stalks  save  one — this  is  called  bring- 
ing cotton  to  a  "final  stand."  By  the  successive  throwing 
of  furrows  toward  thecotton,  the  earth  is  banked  up  on  either 
side  of  it,  so  that  the  rows  are  in  shape  and  size  not  unlike 
sweet-potato  beds.  By  this  means  the  moisture  is  retained 
in  the  ground,  so  that  the  cotton  continues  to  grow  through 
the  long  season  of  drought  which  it  has  invariably  to  en- 
counter. During  the  excessive  rains,  earlier  in  the  season, 
a  furrow  of  earth  is  sometimes  thrown  away  from  the  cot- 
ton, so  as  to  check  its  growth,  thereby''  forcing  it  to  produce 
more  fruit.  After  the  first  working,  which  should  be  com- 
menced as  soon  as  the  cotton  is  well  out  of  the  ground,  the 
crop  should  be  worked  over  with  the  plow  and  hoe  every 
ten  days,  in  order  to  keep  the  weeds  down. 

The  theory  among  cotton-planters  is  that  for  the  first 
two  months  the  root  of  the  cotton  is  forming,  and  that  the 
stalk  does  not  begin  to  grow  until  the  root  has  pushed 
its  way  down  to  a  depth  where  it  has  found  hard  soil, 
from  the  moisture  of  which  it  can  furnish  sustenance  to 
the  plant  during  the  coming  heat  and  drouth.  Whether 
this  is  so  or  not,  I  can  not  say,  but  it  is  very  certain  that, 
during  this  time,  it  is  a  very  feeble,  sickly-looking  j)lant, 
sometimes  with  the  leaf  all  eaten  ofl^,  and  with  nothing  but 
the  faintest  show  of  a  bud  in  the  center,  to  tell  you  the 
plant  is  still  alive.  This  apparent  sickness  continues 
through  all  the  cold  and  wet  season ;  but,  through  it  all, 
there  is  but  one  thing  for  the  planter  to  do — that  is,  to  cul- 
tivate thoroughly,  keeping  the  ground  well  stirred  around 
the  plants — and  by-and-by  the  warm  days  will  come,  and 
then  these  plants,  only  two  inches  high,  will  grow  a  foot  each 
week,  and  a  fair  crop  is  certain,  worm  or  no  worm.     On 


196  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

the  contrary,  if  the  cotton-plant  is  not  free  from  weeds, 
with  soft  earth  about  it,  and  thus  in  a  favorable  condition, 
when  this  growing*  time  comes,  there  is  no  hope  for  a  crop, 
and  the  very  best  thing  for  the  planter  to  do,  is  to  plow  it 
up,  and  raise  a  crop  of  sweet-j)otatoes  instead. 

The  three  great  enemies  to  cotton  are  weeds,  water,  and 
worms.  The  remedy  for  the  first  is  thoroui^h  cultivation  : 
for  the  second,  drainage — add  to  these  two  early  planting, 
and  you  can  invariably  make  a  crop  of  cotton,  as  much  or 
more  than  you  can  gather,  before  the  worm  can  hurt  you. 
On  a  plantation  so  conducted,  the  worm  is  a  positive  ser- 
vice, since  he  eats  off  the  leaves,  and  thus  exposes  the 
cotton-bolls,  which  have  already  matured  two-thirds  of 
the  way  up  the  stalk  (and  some  of  which,  but  for  this, 
would  rot  from  the  continued  moisture  under  the  dense 
leaf-shade),  to  sunlight  and  daylight — only  cutting  off  the 
half-grown  bolls  at  the  top  of  the  stalk,  most  of  which  the 
coming  frost  would  never  allow  to  ripen,  and  which,  if  it 
should,  you  would  never  have  time  to  gather,  as  the  crop 
already  made  will  keep  you  picking  from  September  to 
February. 

I  have  only  to  add  to  the  above,  in  order  to  give  the 
reader  a  thorough  understanding  of  the  growth  of  cotton, 
that  it  begins  to  blossom  as  soon  as  it  begins  to  grow  ;  that 
it  sends  out  its  limbs  just  above  the  surface  of  the  ground, 
where  the  blossoms  first  appear,  and  it  continues  to  grow 
and  put  forth  limbs  and  to  blossom,  until  either  the  worm 
or  the  frost  kills  it.  A  cotton-boll  is  ripe  forty-five  days 
after  the  blossoming,  and  from  the  time  cotton  begins  to 
ripen  the  crop  makes  at  the  rate  of  a  bale  a  day  to  each 
one  hundred  acres. 

The  first  cotton-bolls  to  mature  are,  of  course,  those  on 
the  lower  limbs;  second,  those  on  the  middle  limbs  ;  and, 
last,  those  on  the  top  limbs — hence  the  terms  "bottom," 
"middle,"  and  "top"  crops;  and  it  is  this  "top  crop" 
which  the  worm  destroys,  leaving  the  "  middle  "  and  "  bot- 


COTTON    CULTIVATION.  197 

torn  "  crops  intact,  which  means  at  least  a  bale  to  the  acre — 
this,  of  course,  where  the  cultivation,  drainage,  and  early 
planting  have  been  what  they  ought  to  have  been  ;  there- 
fore, when  you  read  that  the  worm  has  destroyed  the  crop, 
this  probably  means  that  it  has  simply  destro3^ed  what 
would  have  been  a  "top  crop,"  had  it  been  allowed  to 
make.  In  former  times,  when  there  was  no  worm  to  eat 
off  the  leaves,  the  "  bottom  crop  "  frequently  rotted  during 
the  rainy  season  in  August,  so  that  the  planter  had  to  rely 
on  his  "  middle  "  and  "  top  "  crops.  Under  the  worm  dis- 
pensation, this  "bottom  crop" — much  the  most  valuable 
of  the  three,  both  in  yield  and  staple — (next  in  value 
comes  the  "middle  crop,"  and  lastly  the  "top  crop"),  is 
secured. 

The  period  when  the  planter  seems  to  be  more  at  leisure 
than  at  any  other  during  the  entire  year,  is  that  imme- 
diately after  planting,  while  he  is  waiting  for  the  cotton  to 
get  of  sufficient  size  to  commence  cultivation.  Fatal  de- 
lusion !  That  is  the  most  critical  time  in  the  whole 
season.  These  are  golden  moments  which  fix  your  status 
during  the  coming  months — as  to  whether  your  work  is  to 
drive  j^ou,  or  you  to  drive  your  work.  While  the  plow  and 
hoe  are  idle,  the  weeds  and  grass  are  not  idle.  True,  they 
are  just  peeping  out  of  the  ground  now — are  no  larger 
than  the  cotton-plant ;  but  what  a  week  will  do  in  the  life 
of  a  weed,  in  this  rich  soil,  with  frequent  showers  to  help 
it  along  !  Just  now,  the  cultivating  plow  can  turn  them 
under  from  end  to  end  of  the  rows — a  week  hence  they 
will  be  choking  it  every  six  feet,  wearing  out  the  "  hoe- 
gang,"  whose  only  task  should  be  drawing  the  mellow 
earth  around  the  cotton-stalks,  and  not  chojDping  down 
weeds  from  three  inches  to  two  feet  high.  The  simple  les- 
son in  this  paragraph  cost  the  South  millions  of  dollars  in 
the  year  1866. 

That  the  new-comers  should  fall  into  this  pit  is  not  a 
matter  of  surprise.     The  surprise  is  that  the  old  planters 


198  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

were  equally  the  victims.  Filled  with  the  idea  that  the 
land  had  "rested,"  and  was  therefore  enriched — never  for 
a  moment  reflecting  that  their  work  for  the  first  year  or 
two  would  be  the  redemption  of  a  weed-patch,  and  not  the 
easy  cultivation  of  lands  under  subjection — the  old  planter 
made  the  same  mistake  made  by  the  new-comer. 

Perhaps  our  own  case  would  not  have  been  quite  so  bad, 
but,  about  the  time  Uncle  Wash  '^  declaared  "  our  cotton  was 
large  enough  to  commence  cultivation,  rains  set  in,  which 
continued  with  more  or  less  frequency  for  two  weeks.  The 
waters  filled  up  the  sloughs  in  the  rear  of  the  cultivated 
lands,  and  then  backed  up  into  the  ditches,  overflowing -the 
low  places.  During  all  this  time,  the  weeds  grew  apace. 
There  were  half  days  or  days  in  the  intervals  of  the  storm, 
when  our  hands  could  have  worked  at  cultivating  the 
ridges,  and  between  showers  all  the  time.  What  a  ser- 
vice they  might  have  rendered  to  the  half-drowned  cotton- 
plants,  by  opening  choked-up  ditches,  and  thus  helping 
the  water  to  run  off!  This  was  what  they  had  to  do  in 
the  days  of  slavery,  but  now  "  dey  was  free,  and  dey 
wouldn't  work  in  de  mud  an'  de  water  for  nobody."  I 
tried  to  reason  with  them  by  telling  them  the  cotton-plants 
were  sick ;  that  the  hoeing  of  a  single  row,  even,  on  a 
ridge  of  land,  would  be  so  much  relief  to  them  ;  that  tak- 
ing the  "trash"  out  of  the  ditches  was  a  religious  duty. 
What  would  they  think  of  a  doctor  who  should  refuse  to 
visit  them  when  they  were  sick,  because  it  had  been 
stormy,  and  he  did  n't  want  to  go  out  in  the  mud  and 
water  ?  They  were  the  doctors  to  the  sick  cotton-plants, 
and,  when  called  upon,  they  didn't  want  to  go  out  and  as- 
sist in  relieving  them,  I  said;  and,  in  this  way,  we  got 
some  few  scraps  of  unwilling  service.  But  here,  mani- 
festly, was  a  serious  hitch  in  cotton-raising  under  the  new 
dispensation.  What  was  necessary  to  be  done  in  the  days  of 
slavery,  was  equally  necessary  now — more  so,  because  of 
the   weed-ridden   condition   of   the  plantation,   and    the 


SMALL-POX,    RAIN,    ETC.  199 

choked-iip  ditches  ;  and  just  to  the  extent  that  the  hibor 
fell  short  of  the  old  requirements,  should  we  now  fail. 
And  so,  because  we  did  not  begin  to  cultivate  our  cotton 
the  very  day  after  we  had  finished  planting  the  last  of  it, 
and  because  our  laborers  were  unwilling  to  work  in  the 
wet  and  mud,  as  they  had  done  in  the  old  times,  our  crop 
was  in  the  grass.  Of  course,  we  did  not  despair  of  getting 
it  clear.  No  one  told  us  that  it  was  a  hopeless  task,  be- 
cause all  were  in  the  same  boat,  and  no  one  was  willing  to 
acknowledge  what  must  have  been  apparent  to  any  im^Dar- 
tial  observer,  who  had  had  previous  exj^erience  in  cotton- 
raising.  Then,  too,  it  was  just  possible,  if  the  weather 
cleared  and  the  season  was  late,  and  no  army  worm  came, 
that  we  could  do  something  with  our  crop,  even  yet.  An 
t'  if"  and  two  "  ands  "  were  the  threads  on  which  the  suc- 
cess of  our  scheme  hung. 


CHAPTER  XXXIX. 

SMALL-POX — RAIN — NEGRO    ECCENTRICITIES — ADJUTANT 
JOHNSON   AND   THE   DEPARTURE. 

The  small-pox  was  spreading  every-where.  General 
Dobson's  body-servant  had  nursed  a  case  of  it  in  the  North, 
and  within  a  couple  of  weeks  he  was  taken  down  with  the 
disease.  The  following  week,  Mrs.  Harding's  cook  sent 
her  little  girl  in  to  tell  me,  "she  is  ailing  like;  will  you 
please,  sir,  come  out,  an'  see  what  is  de  matter  wid  her." 
I  went  out,  and  found  her  rolled  up,  head  and  all,  in  a 
blanket,  and  I  was  obliged  to  punch  Jane  well,  before  we 
could  induce  her  to  uncover  her  head.  That  told  the  story, 
for  there  were  the  unmistakable  small-pox  blotches,  and 


200  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

there  sat  her  two  little  unvaccinated  raulatto  children  on 
the  floor  beside  her,  munching  stale  hoe-cake.  Jane  had 
been  "  de  mistus  of  an  oberseer,  and  dese  were  the  chilun" 
she  "  done  had  by  him  " — one  was  five  and  the  other  three 
years  old,  a  girl  and  a  boy,  and  they  were  bright  little 
things.  Our  children  played  with  them  every  day  on  the 
gallery,  or,  when  the  weather  permitted,  in  the  yard. 
The  servants'  quarters,  where  they  staid,  were  several  rods 
from  the  house,  and  Dobson  gave  it  as  his  opinion  that 
there  was  very  little  danger  of  any  of  us  taking  the  dis- 
ease, if  the  children  could  be  kept  separate  ;  so  we  ban- 
ished Jane's  to  the  servants'  quarters,  and  quarantined  our 
own  in  the  front  part  of  the  house.  This  was  only  a  tem- 
porary arrangement,  for  we  at  once  resolved  that  the  only 
safe  thing  to  do  was  to  send  our  families  North ;  but  ife 
would  take  a  few  days  to  pack  up  every  thing  and  close 
up  the  house,  since  we  were  going  to  the  plantation  to  live 
as  soon  as  our  families  went  away.  The  day  after  Jane  was 
taken  down,  Mrs.  Dobson's  cook  was  smitten  with  the  dis- 
ease; and  in  the  evening  7ier"  chile,"  a  half-grown  girl, 
was  likewise  smitten.  Dobson's  body-servant  had  by  this 
time  so  far  recovered  that  he  was  able  to  act  as  general 
nurse,  and  as  fast  as  the  cases  came  he  took  them  in  charge. 

Fortunately  for  all  of  us,  our  house  and  yard  servant 
had  already  had  the  small-pox,  so  he  was  turned  in  as 
cook,  proving  a  fine  success  in  that  dej^artment. 

On  the  evening  of  the  third  day  after  the  outbreak  of 
the  disease,  I  came  in  from  the  plantation,  when,  riding 
up  to  the  rear  gallery,  what  should  I  see  but  Jane's  girl 
and  our  eldest  boy  playing  together  !  "  Here  is  a  case  of 
varioloid,  to  a  certainty,"  I  exclaimed.  The  little  rascal 
had  escaped  the  watchful  eye  of  his  mother,  and  thought- 
lessly hunted  up  his  mulatto  playmate,  who  was  no  doubt 
only  too  happy  to  be  released  from  her  quarantine. 

Many  anxious  days  followed,  under  the  painful  appre- 
hension that  his  exposure  had  been  such  as  to  make  it  cer- 


SMALL-POX,    RAIN,    ETC.  201 

tain  that  he  would  have  the  Tarioloid.  These  were  dark 
days  in  more  ways  than  one.  They  were  literally  dark, 
for  the  rain  was  falling  at  frequent  intervals,  and  there  was 
mud  and  water  every-where  ;  our  families  were  living  in 
the  atmosphere  of  small-pox,  and  this  fearful  contagion 
might  prostrate  any  one  or  all  of  us  at  any  time.     I  had 

not  minded  it  so  long  as  it  was  confined  to  the  plantation 

in  fact  I  had  daily  visited  it  there  for  some  time,  minister- 
ing to  it,  but  now  that  it  was  at  our  own  door  the  case  was 
diiferent,  and  made  me  tremble  with  fear  when  I  thought 
of  the  exposure  of  my  wife  and  little  ones.  There  they 
were— prisoners,  as  it  were,  in  the  midst  of  the  pestilence— 
for  there  was  no  door  in  this  region  then  which  was  not 
doubly  barred  and  bolted  against  us,  and  they  must  needs 
wait  here  until  our  arrangements  were  made  to  place  them 
on  a  steamboat  and  send  them  away.  Our  laborers  were 
very  much  demoralized  from  the  long  rest  during  the  rainy 
weather ;  every  day  some  one  or  more  of  them  were  get- 
ting drunk,  and  woman-whijoping  was  a  frequent  occur- 
rence. I  was  often  called  on  to  quell  these  women  and 
whisky  disturbances.  The  moral  atmosphere  was  awful- 
one  day  a  woman  would  be  cohabiting  with  one  man,  the 
next  she  would  have  another,  "  caze  she  done  had  a  fuss 
wid  him  an'  quit  him."  There  were  desperately  jealous 
men  and  women  among  them,  and  they  were  constantly 
keeping  up  a  "  'sturbance  in  de  quarta."  The  best  fighters 
among  them  were  the  women,  not  only  with  tongue,  but 
with  fist  and  teeth.  There  were  quiet  ones — Jimmy  and 
his  beautiful  Mary,  Uncle  Wash  and  his  coal-black  wife, 
with  Clara  and  others. 

Yery  objectionable  traits  of  character  came  to  the  sur- 
face during  this  trying  ordeal  of  the  rainy  season.  Car- 
rying out  our  idea  of  raising  our  own  pork  the  second 
year,  one  of  the  first  things  I  did  on  reaching  JEebron  was 
to  purchase  a  half  dozen  hogs  with  their  litters.  These 
pigs  had  grown  to  good  size  now,  and  every  few  days  we 
9* 


202  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

would  miss  one  of  them.  They  were  undoubtedly  killed  at 
night  in  the  quarters,  and  eaten  by  our  own  hands.  The 
guilty  parties  must  have  been  generally  known,  and  yet  I 
could  not  ferret  them  out.  Our  heads  of  squads — which 
we  had  so  confidently  counted  upon  to  unearth  mischief — 
seemed  no  wiser  than  the  rest ;  and  even  Uncle  Wash, 
who  had  gained  so  large  a  share  of  our  confidence, 
"  could  n't,  for  de  life  o'  him,  'magin'  who  did  it."  In  my 
distress,  I  mentioned  the  thing  to  a  neighbor.  He  replied, 
with  a  loud  laugh  : 

"  There  is  n't  a  nigger  in  your  quarters  who  does  n't 
know  about  it — they  are  all  in  it ;  but  you  '11  never  catch 
one  of  them  telling  on  another  ;  they  call  that  going  back 
on  their  color." 

Was  this  true  ?  It  was  hard  to  feel  that  while  we  were 
feeding  them  so  generously,  they  should  be  stealing  our 
hogs,  which  we  could  not  afford  to  kill  and  eat  ourselves, 
because  we  wanted  to  fatten  them  in  the  winter.  If  our 
neighbor  was  correct  in  his  theory,  here  was  the  whole 
plantation  banded  against  us  for  the  jDurpose  of  stealing  ; 
and  this  thought  made  me  feel,  more  than  ever,  that  we 
were  in  the  country  of  our  enemies. 

Another  trait  had  developed  itself,  which  was  particu- 
larly annoying  just  now,  since  it  was  the  main  obstacle  in 
getting  our  labor  out  during  the  intervals  of  rain.  The 
poorest  hands  were  taken  as  a  standard  by  the  good  ones. 
For  instance,  if  the  laborers  were'  late  getting  out  in  the 
morning,  and  I  would  speak  to  them  about  it,  their  com- 
mon reply  was:  "We's  out  jist  as  soon  as"  so-and-so 
(mentioning  the  most  indifferent  man  in  the  squad)  ;  "we 
do  n't  wants  to  be  de  fust  one  in  de  field."  And  when  the 
weather  would  clear,  and  we  would  urge  them  out,  their 
reply  would  be:  "We's  ready  to  go  out  ef"  so-and-so 
"  will  go  ;  but  we  do  n't  want  to  be  de  onlyest  ones  to  go 
to  de  field."  The  heads,  therefore,  made  their  attacks  upon 
the  drones,  knowing  full  well  that  when  they  went  out  at 


SMALL-POX,    RAIN,    ETC.  203 

work  the  rest  would  follow.  The  practical  effect  of  all  this 
was  to  make  the  lazy  ones  the  ringleaders,  and  they,  and 
not  the  industrious  ones,  made  the  standard  of  work.  It 
seemed  so  much  easier  to  drop  to  the  level  of  the  lazy  ones 
than  to  drag  them  up  to  the  height  of  the  industrious  ones. 
It  was  in  vain  to  reason  with  them,  as  they  would  always 
say  :  "  We  ought  n't  to  be  found  fault  wid  long  as  we  's 
ready  to  go  to  work  when  de  rest  do."  "  Ef  de  rest  'd 
work  half  de  night,  we  's  ready."  "  Our  name  's  work." 
"  Work  never  skeer'd  us,  but  we  do  n't  wants  to  be  at  it 
when  de  rest  aint  dar,"  one  after  another  would  exclaim. 

Another  singular  trait  was  their  perfect  indifference  to 
their  sick.  There  was  a  severe  case  of  pneumonia.  I 
tried  in  vain  to  get  the  patient  cared  for,  and  for  sheer 
want  of  attention  he  died.  Then  the  case  was  different ; 
the  whole  plantation  stopped  work,  and  turned  out  to 
"  sing  and  pray  him  into  hebben,"  the  ceremonies  contin- 
uing for  twenty-four  hours. 

Every  thing  was  now  ready  for  the  departure  of  our 
families — they  were  to  start  Monday  morning  ;  and  so  on 
Sunday  afternoon  we  all  rode  up  to  the  plantation  to  give 
the  servants  who  were  going  away  an  opportunity  to  say 
good-bye.  The  condition  of  Adjutant  Johnson  was  worse. 
It  had  been  evident  to  me  for  some  time  that  he  was  grad- 
ually failing,  notwithstanding  the  careful  nursing  of  Clara. 
I  called  Dobson's  attention  to  him,  and  asked  him  if  he 
did  not  think  he  ought  to  be  taken  home  to  his  parents. 

"Yes." 

At  my  urgent  solicitation  he  took  upon  himself  the  task 
of  telling  Johnson  so,  and  then  old  Clara  packed  his  trunk, 
dropping  tears  into  it  along  with  his  shirts  and  collars, 
while  Billy  prepared  a  conveyance  ;  then  we  made  a  chair 
with  our  hands,  and  the  invalid,  no  heavier  than  a  ten-year 
old  boy,  sat  in  it,  with  an  arm  over  each  of  our  shoulders, 
and  we  carried  him  and  placed  him  in  the  wagon,  and 
Billy  drove  off  with  him  amidst  the  tears  and  prayers  of 


204  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

his  faithful  old  nurse,  who  might  never  see  him  again  on 
earth,  for  this  time  it  looked  as  if  he  were  surely  going 
home  to  die. 

Clara's  last  wailing  exclamation  was  :  "  Be  good  to  Je- 
sus, chile  ;  old  Clara  will  meet  yer  in  hebben." 

We  rode  behind  the  wagon  which  was  conveying  our 
invalid  away,  and  when  the  negroes  in  the  quarters  learned 
what  was  going  on,  which  they  did  from  Clara's  lamenta- 
tions, they  insisted  upon  stopping  it  and  bidding  him 
good-bye.  The  patience  shown  by  him  in  his  suffering 
had  won  their  hearts  completely,  and  many  and  hearty 
were  the  "God  bress  yous"  spoken,  and  many  were  the 
old  shoes  thrown  after  him,  "  jes  fer  luck,"  as  the  wagon 
again  moved  on. 

On  the  way  out  of  the  plantation  the  wagon  stopped 
again,  and  Billy  got  down  and  pulled  up  some  of  the 
largest  cotton-plants,  and  handed  them  to  the  invalid. 
The  latter,  no  doubt,  requested  him  to  stoj)  and  pluck 
them  as  a  memento  of  the  plantation,  which  had  at  once 
been  a  source  of  joy  and  sorrow,  of  comfort  and  pain  to 
him,  and  for  whose  success  he  had  suffered  and  periled  so 
much. 

It  was  sudden,  the  suggestion  of  his  going  away,  and  at 
first  he  had  shown  all  the  self-will  and  petulance  of  one 
stricken  with  disease.  "  I  wont  stir  a  step,"  he  exclaimed. 
"  It  is  a  plot  to  get  me  out  of  the  way."  And  then  this 
little  spirt  of  temper  having  thoroughly  exhausted  him, 
he  sank  back,  saying  : 

"  I  will  do  whatever  you  think  best.  The  fact  is,  I  'm  of 
no  account  here — perhaps  I  had  better  go  JSTorth  during 
the  summer  and  get  some  strength  for  the  labors  of  the 
picking  season  in  the  fall." 

When  we  reached  our  house,  we  carried  him  up  on  the 
gallery,  as  we  had  carried  him  from  his  room  in  the 
quarters,  he  holding  on  to  his  cotton-plants  until  we  depos- 
ited him  in  a  chair ;  then  he  asked  Mi's.  Harding  to  please 


SMALL-POX,    RAIN,    ETC.  205 

put  them  into  some  water,  saying  :  "  I  love  these  plants  ; 
there  are  many  ducats  at  the  end  of  them.  How  I  should 
like  to  stay  here  all  summer  with  you,  Mr.  Harding,  and 
watch  them  grow,  but  no  matter  ;  I  '11  be  back  in  the  fall 
to  lend  you  a  helping  hand.  1  've  rather  been  in  your  way, 
60  far,  sir,  but  I  '11  make  it  good  to  you  this  fall."  Then  ho 
added,  as  if  thinking  aloud  :  "  How  impatient  I  shall  be 
to  get  back." 

Early  on  Monday  morning,  the  wagons  came  down  and 
every  thing  in  the  line  of  edibles,  with  most  of  the  furni- 
ture, was  sent  up  to  the  plantation  on  them.  The  steam- 
boat was  expected  along  at  ten  in  the  morning;  so  the 
trunks  were  sent  to  the  wharf-boat,  and  the  buggies  brought 
around  to  the  front  door  to  take  our  families  and  the  in- 
valid over  to  the  landing  as  soon  as  we  should  see  the 
smoke  of  the  boat  coming  up  the  river. 

It  was  arranged  that  the  small-pox  cases  should  be 
moved  at  once  to  the  plantation  hospital,  and,  should 
Jane  recover,  she  was  to  be  our  cook.  The  French  negro 
George,  who  had  been  cooking  since  Jane's  sickness,  was 
to  accompany  Mrs.  Harding  and  the  children  home,  and 
then,  returning,  act  as  my  body  servant.  Dobson  was  to 
accompany  the  family  party  North  as  generalissimo. 

Before  ten  o'clock  we  were  all  on  the  front  gallery- -the 
ladies  bonneted  and  shawled — ready  to  push  over  to  the 
wharf-boat  at  the  first  sign  of  a  steamboat. 

Under  all  the  circumstances,  the  separation  was  a  sad 
one :  small-pox  on  the  plantation,  and  small-pox  at  our 
very  door;  stormy  weather;  laborers  demoralized  and 
showing  very  objectionable  traits  of  character ;  cotton  in 
the  grass  ;  our  prospective  home  in  the  overseer's  cabin  ; 
Adjutant  Johnson  about  to  start  on,  perhaps,  his  last  jour- 
ney, and,  added  to  these,  a  thorough  consciousness  on  my 
part  that  we  were  living  in  a  community  where  we  had 
neither  friends  nor  well-wishers,  unless  the  black  peoj)lo 
were  such. 


206  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

Twelve  o'clock  came,  and  no  boat  in  sight.  Our  party 
were  getting  very  impatient,  and  the  invalid  looked  more 
than  ever  hollow-eyed,  from  having  sat  up  so  long.  The 
beds  were  sent  away  and  there  was  nothing  but  the  travel- 
ing-shawls for  him  to  lie  down  upon — a  hard  bed  indeed 
for  a  sick  man.  The  children  were  hungry,  but  there  was 
not  so  much  as  a  crust  of  bread  in  the  house  for  them.  The 
fact  is,  we  had  vacated  the  house,  and  were  just  staying  on 
the  gallery  until  the  boat  came.  At  one  o'clock  we  dis- 
patched G-eorge  over  to  the  landing  for  tidings,  it  being 
now  three  hours  overdue.  AVe  had  yet  to  learn  the  lesson 
which  every  one  living  on  the  Mississippi  river  must  learn 
sooner  or  later,  viz.,  when  a  boat  is  due  at  a  particular 
hour,  it  means  that  it  is  due  any  time  within  twenty-four 
hours  after  ;  and  that  the  only  safe  way  is  not  to  expect  it 
until  it  is  actually  at  the  landing.  George  came  back  with 
the  message  : 

"  Boat  past  due,  sa ;  dey  spect  her  ebery  momint." 

Notwithstanding  there  was  no  sign  of  smoke  below,  and 
it  would  take  an  hour  for  her  to  reach  the  landing  after  its 
first  appearance,  this  message  was  encouragement ;  it  was 
at  least  something  to  be  again  assured  that  the  boat  was 
expected. 

Two  o'clock,  three  o'clock,  come  and  go.  but  no  boat, 
and  all  of  us  are  half-starved.  A  bed  has  been  improvised 
from  shawls  and  wrapj^ings,  where  our  invalid  lies  rest- 
ively. In  the  morning  he  had  said  something  about  the 
juicy  beef-steak,  the  cup  of  coffee  with  cow's  milk,  the 
light  bread,  and  the  soft-boiled  egg  he  was  going  to  have 
as  soon  as  he  got  on  the  boat,  and  it  had  made  the  mouths 
of  the  rest  of  the  part}"  water,  for  we  had  all  been  stran- 
gers to  fresh  meat,  or  milk,  or  eggs,  or  light  bread,  for  a 
long  time. 

The  situation  was  getting  serious,  and  finally  Dobson 
and  I  sallied  out  and  scoured  the  town  for  something  to 
eat.     We  came  back,  after  an  hour's  search,  with  a  couple 


LETTER   FROM    MRS.    HARDING.  207 

of  boxes  of  sardines,  some  crackers,  and  two  bottles  of  En- 
glish stout,  and  our  party  devoured  every  thing  saving  the 
cstout-bottles  and  the  sardine  boxes,  but  it  was  sorry  food 
for  our  invalid,  and,  after  he  had  swallowed  a  cracker,  he 
turned  his  face,  weary  and  wan,  to  the  wall,  as  if  worn  out 
with  fatigue,  but  with  no  bed  on  which  to  rest  himself — 
hungry,  but  with  nothing  within  reach  he  could  eat. 

Finally,  at  nine  o'clock  in  the  night,  the  long-exj^ected 
boat  sounded  for  the  wharf — then,  after  the  hurry  to  the 
landing,  the  hurry  to  get  upon  the  boat,  the  hurried  good- 
bye, the  last  hurried  look,  and  the  last  hurried  hand-press- 
ure from  the  invalid,  my  family  was  steaming  up  the 
river,  and  I  was  left  alone. 


CHAPTEB  XL. 

LETTER   FROM   MRS.    HARDING. 

"  On  the  way  to  Memphis. 
"  You  can  not  think  how  sad  I  felt  to  move  away  on  the 
'Dan  Able,'  and  leave  you  behind  in  that  horrible  place — 
in  the  midst  of  negro  small-pox,  and  among  uncivil  neigh- 
bors. I  can  not  enjoy  any  thing  on  this  beautiful  boat,  so  sad 
are  my  remembrances  of  the  past  few  days,  and  you  there  to 
endure  all  by  yourself,  on  and  on  indefinitely.  Oh  !  will  au- 
tumn ever  come — or  shall  we  ever  see  each  other  again  ?  I 
reproach  myself  constantly  for  ever  consenting  to  let  you  go 
there.  Why  could  not  our  picture  have  been  drawn  more 
correctly?  AYhat  shall  I  tell  our  friends  in  the  North, 
when  they  ask  me  how  we  like  our  Southern  home?  You 
may  depend  upon  it,  John,  I  shall  not  divulge  every  thing 
— they  shall  not  know  how  great  is  our  failure,  until  we 


208  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

are  compelled  to  confess.  I  shall  stretch  my  conscience 
considerably  in  the  coming  months,  and  picture  that '  tomb  ' 
we  just  left  as  a  charming  Southern  villa.  If  your  life 
can  only  be  spared  to  put  us  up  a  cabin,  ever  so  humble,  on 
the  plantation,  where  the  necessity  of  passing  our  neigh- 
bors' doors  may  be  avoided,  then  we  will  come  to  you  and 
bear  all  with  you.  But  I  fear  you  '11  never  see  poor  Adju- 
tant Johnson  again  ;  he  was  very  weary,  more  so  than  he 
would  acknowledge,  last  night,  and  as  a  consequence  is 
very  low  to-day  ;  had  a  restless  night,  and,  as  George  ex- 
presses it,  '  got  pow'ful  down  in  de  night;  tot  he'd  done 
an'  die,  two  or  free  times.'  If  we  get  him  home  it  is  all 
we  can  do.  I  have  given  George  to  him,  for  he  requires 
constant  attention,  and  I  am  able  to  take  care  of  our  boys 
myself. 

"  Memphis. 
"  We  reached  here  before  day  this  morning,  and  what 
do  you  think  ? — Adjutant  Johnson  is  up,  dressed  and 
sitting  out  on  the  guards  of  the  boat !  It  did  not  seem, 
when  I  retired  last  night,  that  he  could  live  until  morn- 
ing. I  had  the  porter  make  a  cot-bed  by  his  state- 
room door,  and  watch  his  every  want  during  the  night. 
Poor  fellow  !  he  dreads  the  night  so,  and  seems  to  dislike 
to  be  left  alone.  I  wonder  if  he  knows  how  more  than 
frail  he  is  ;  I  some  times  think  he  does,  and  then,  almost 
before  I  can  think,  he  will  be,  as  I  found  him  this  morning, 
sitting  up,  grand  as  any  well  man.  The  boat  lies  here  un- 
til to-morrow  morning,  so  I  '11  write  you  as  things  occur 
during  the  day,  and  mail  my  letter  this  evening.  .  .  . 
It  is  ten  o'clock  a.  m.;  every  body  is  preparing  to  walk  up 
into  the  city,  but  I  dare  not  leave  Adjutant  J.,  so  I  have 
let  George  take  the  little  boys  out  for  an  airing,  and  we 
two  are  sitting  in  the  ladies'  cabin.  I  have  fixed  him  with 
pillows  on  a  sofa,  and  he  is  sleeping  sweetly  while  I  am 
writing.  Two  nice,  stylish-looking  young  ladies  are  very 
sympathetic  ;  have  asked  mo  a  great  many  questions  con- 


LETTERS  FROM  MRS.  HARDING,  ETC.         209 

cerning  '  the  sick  gentleman,'  and  have  deposited  a  bas- 
ket of  nice  oranges  on  the  table  by  my  side  for  him.  He 
has  just  awakened,  and  I  have  presented  the  fruit ;  he  seems 
so  much  pleased,  and  remarked  :  '  How  very  kind  every 
body  is  to  me.  You  are  so  good,  Mrs.  Harding,  to  stay 
here  all  day  because  you  fear  I  shall  be  lonely.  I  have 
some  thing  I  would  like  you  to  do  for  me.  I  do  so  much 
want  a  Magnolia-bud,  and  a  Cape-gesamine.'  I  have 
agreed  to  run  out  and  try  and  find  some  for  him,  when 
George  comes  back.  .  .  .  Four  o'clock  p.  m.  I  have 
just  returned  from  my  search,  away  down  Main  street.  I 
found  some  buds,  and  delighted  was  I,  too;  but  when  I 
came  on  board,  George  met  me  and  said  :  'Adjutant  dre'ful 
bad  agin  ;  he  is  done  an'  gone  to  bed.'  I  hurried  to  his 
room  and  found  him  prostrate.  He  smiled  as  I  handed 
him  the  flowers  and  said:  '1  love  them  so  much,  and  I 
wanted  to  take  them  home.'  I  must  wind  up  my  letter, 
dear  John,  for  indeed  I  am  frightened.  How  I  hope  Dr. 
and  Mrs.  Dobson  will  come  back  soon,  for  I  am  afraid  to  be 
alone.  I  shall  write  you  a  line  to  mail  from  above.  Keep 
up  your  poor,  taxed  spirits,  and  let  me  go  back  to  you 
soon  as  possible. 


CHAPTER  XLI. 

LETTERS  FROM  MRS.  HARDING — DEATH  OF  ADJUTANT  JOHNSON. 

''En  route — Still  on  hoard  '  Dan  Able' 

"  It  is  my  desire  to  mail  you  one  more  letter  from  the 

boat,  so  I  begin  this  one,  and  if  it  is  disconnected  and 

crazy,  please  attribute  the  fact   to   my  great  anxiety  for 

poor,  dear  Adjutant  J.     Such  patience,  such  cheerfulness, 


210  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

and  such  submission  can  only  live  in  the  breast  of  such  a 
man  ;  surely  God  is  with  him.  George  called  me  in  the 
dead  of  the  night  to  come  quick.  I  went  almost  immedi- 
ately to  his  state-room  and  found  him  rigid  and  cold.  I 
sent  for  Dr.  Dobson,  and  to  the  kitchen  of  the  boat  for  a 
mustard -draught,  and  bottles  filled  with  hot  water.  The 
Adjutant's  sufferings  were  intense,  but  Dr.  D.  soon  admin- 
istered the  needed  remedy,  and  sleep  came  to  his  relief. 
This  mornin«:he  seems  still  under  the  influence  of  the  Doc- 
tor's  medicine,  and  as  he  lies  sleeping  he  looks  like  death. 
"  That  pleasant  Southerner  who  called  on  us  once,  and 
was  so  charming,  who  lives  on  the  Lake  near  Mr.  Jonathan 
Hampson — Capt.  Hurd — came  on  board  at  his  plantation 
some  fifty  miles  above  us.  We  find  him  delightful  com- 
pany. He  quite  consoles  me  about  you ;  says  you  will 
have  a  much  more  endurable  summer  than  I  anticipate  for 
you;  that  you  will  enjoy  the  fruits  of  that  country  and 
the  fishing,  while  life  on  the  plantation  will  be  much  more 
pleasant  than  in  the  house  near  the  village.  Oh  !  how  I 
wish  I  could  think  so.  I  have  no  recollection  of  you  there 
that  is  very  cheering,  but  I  do  hope  for  brighter  days  on 
Hebron.  The  Adjutant  is  awake,  and  I  must  hasten  to 
him,  and  so  will  mail  this,  and  write  you  upon  our  arrival 
at  our  old  home." 

"  In  our  own  sweet  home  again,  May,  1866. 
"Oh,  John,  could  you  but  see  our  lovely  home  as  I  see  it 
this  morning,  I  think  my  happiness  would  be  complete. 
Our  boys  are  like  a  pair  of  fawns  ;  they  are  so  delighted 
to  be  where  they  can  jump  and  kick  about  with  freedom, 
fearing  nothing  and  enjoying  every  thing.  As  in  contrast 
with  that  tomb  by  the  village,  it  seems  Paradise  indeed. 
Talk  of  the  sunny  South  !  why,  John,  I  have  seen  more 
sunshine  from  my  standpoint,  since  our  arrival  here  last 
evening,  than  I  saw  during  all  my  stay  in  that  sunny  clime 
where    'perpetual    bloom,'   'kind    hospitality,'   and    any 


LETTERS    FROM    MRS.  HARDING,  ETC.  211 

amount  of  manly  '  chivalry'  are  reported,  and  have  been 
so  from  time  immemorial,  as  the  prevailing  peculiarities  of 
that  country,  and  which,  in  our  short  stay  there,  we  have 
found  so  wanting.  Could  you  but  sell  back  to  Jonathan 
Hampson  his  Hebron,  and  be  content  to  come  back  here 
and  '  let  well  enough  alone,'  think  how  we  could  enjoy  our- 
selves again  here  among  friends  reliable  in  every  sense. 
But  I  must  turn  from  my  bright,  lovely  picture  of  an  im- 
possibility to  one  sad,  so  sad — that  of  our  dying  friend, 
Adjutant  Johnson.  If  he  is  living  this  morning  I  shall  be 
greatly  surprised.  Poor  sufferer!  It  took  us  all  to  keep 
life  in  him  until  we  could  put  him  tenderly  into  the  arms 
of  his  brother  at  our  depot.  His  family  were  most  of  them 
there  to  meet  him,  but  they  did  not  expect  to  see  him  in  so 
low  a  condition,  and  the  expressions  of  anguish  on  their 
faces  will  haunt  me.  His  brother  carried  him  in  his  arms 
to  their  family  carriage,  oh,  so  tenderly,  and  laid  him 
on  pillows  his  sisters  had  thoughtfully  brought  for  his 
comfort.  I  have  sent  G-eorge  to  inquire  for  him  and  offer 
my  services,  and  1  dread  his  return,  through  fear  of  a  sad 
report. 

"  I  did  not  tell  you  what  happened  to  me  when  I  went 
up  into  Memphis  to  get  those  flowers  for  our  dear  sick 
friend.  Captain  Hurd  kindly  offered  to  escort  me.  The 
boys  also  went  with  us.  As  we  passed  the  clerk's  desk,  I 
noticed  two  or  three  horrid-looking  men  in  close  proxim- 
ity, glancing  at  him  with  eyes  on  fire ;  then  we  all  dis- 
tinctly heard  one  of  them  say:  'D — d  Yankee — we'll 
show  him,'  etc.,  and,  as  we  stepped  down  the  stairs,  on  the 
front  of  the  boat,  we  noticed  they  were  following  us  ;  and  as 
the  Captain  preceded  me  on  the  gang-plank  with  our  little 
boy,  I  looked  back  just  in  time  to  see  one  of  the  men  take 
a  pistol  from  his  pocket,  when,  as  he  was  about  to  fire  to- 
ward us,  a  gentleman  stepped  up  behind  him,  threw  his 
arm  holding  the  weapon  into  the  air,  and  its  contents 
flashed  above  our  heads.     A  scufSe  ensued  between  them, 


212  A   YEAR   OP   WRECK. 

and  the  companion  of  the  one  who  had  fired  the  shot 
shouted  at  us,  '  that 's  intended  to  hit  the  man  who 
dances  attendance  upon  a  set  o'  Yanks.'  I  asked  the  Cap- 
tain, who  stood  enraged  and  flushed  with  mortification, 
what  it  all  meant,  and  his  chagrined  reply  was  :  '  In- 
deed, Mrs.  Harding,  they  are  not  worth  minding.  I  hoped 
you  had  not  noticed  them.'  On  our  way  up  into  town, 
he  told  me  the  parties  were  people  from  our  county, 
planters  and  neighbors  of  his  ;  that  they  had  been  drink- 
ing, and  were  not  accountable  for  what  they  did.  It  was 
very  generous  in  him  to  think  so,  but  all  the  same  I 
thought  it  showed  what  was  in  their  hearts.  It  was  a  very 
narrow  escape  for  me,  for  the  reason  that,  being  between 
the  two  parties  and  thus  shielding  Captain  Hurd,  I  should 
very  likely  have  received  the  contents  of  the  pistol.  1 
do  n't  doubt,  John,  that  those  horrid  Southerners  were  go- 
ing to  murder  that  nice  man  simply  because  he  was  show- 
ing himself  the  gentleman  to  a  l!^orthern  family.  There 
were  two  women  on  board  the  '  Dan  Able,'  who  '  Yankeed  ' 
me  all  the  way  up  to  Louisville.  I  can  not  call  them  ladies, 
for  their  actions  did  not  denote  that  they  were  ladies.  As 
I  passed  by  them  in  the  cabin,  one  of  them  groaned  at  me, 
and  hissed  '  Yankee,'  and  her  companion  said,  '  Look  at 
her  big  feet,'  and  they  both  drew  their  dresses  away  from 
me,  as  if  afraid  of  contamination.  Can  you  wonder  at  my 
horror  of  your  being  in  that  atmosphere  ?  .  .  .  George 
has  just  returned,  John,  and  I  can  scarcely  pen  his  news. 
Our  gentle,  patient,  cheerful  Adjutant  Johnson  is  no  more. 
Quietly,  peacefully,  without  a  murmur,  he  breathed  his 
last,  full  of  conciousness,  before  daylight  this  morning,  and 
G-eorge  says,  "  De  Cap'n  lays  dere  jes  like  he  was  done 
gone  to  sleep ;  an  his  mudder  tel  me  he  nebber  let  'em 
put  de  'nolias  and  flowers  you  done  get  for  him  in  Mem- 
phis away  from  him  at  all ;  an'  dere  dey  is  right  by  his 
side,  now  he  is  done  dead.'     Peace  to  his  dear  ashes." 


NEGRO   PECULIARITIES.  213 


CflAPTEPt  XLll. 


NEGRO   PECULIARITIES. 


So  FAR  as  the  statistics  prove  any  thing  in  this  respect, 
no  larger  percentage  of  free  negroes  are  thieves  than  is 
found  among  white  people.  The  tendency  of  slavery,  how- 
ever, v^as  to  educate  a  race  of  petty  thieves.  Punishment 
for  theft  committed  by  a  slave  was  corporal,  not  that 
which  the  citizen  receives  at  the  hands  of  the  law.  Take 
any  class  of  people  the  world  over,  and  let  theft  be  punish- 
able simply  by  lashes  laid  on  the  back,  and  where  are  the 
bolts  and  bars  that  would  keep  your  property  in  safety? 

The  instinct  of  the  slave  said  :  "  My  master  owes  me  a 
living ;  he  denies  me  many  things  which  it  is  pleasant 
to  have — sometimes,  though  not  often,  to  the  extent  of  suf- 
ficient food ;  what  my  appetite  craves,  or  what  I  may  really 
need,  of  his,  and  can  get  without  his  knowledge,  I  will 
take.  If  he  catches  me,  I  shall  be  punished,  but  there 
isn't  much  danger  of  that,  as  Sambo,  Cnf^y,  Cloe,  Dinah, 
and  all  the  rest  will  never  tell  on  me.  Each  has  taken 
things  in  the  same  manner  and,  therefore,  all  are  interested 
in  hiding  the  act." 

This  thieving  extended  only  to  food,  the  killing  of  hogs 
or  beef  cuttle,  or  the  robbing  of  hen-roosts,  very  rarely 
to  the  breaking  open  of  meat-houses,  and  never  to  burg- 
lary in  the  houses  where  the  "  white  folks  "  lived.  Durins- 
our  long  residence  among  them,  there  never  has  been  a 
night  when  they  could  not  have  come  into  our  house,  by 
simply  turning  the  knob  of  any  one  of  a  half-dozen 
doors,  and  yet  we  have  never  been  disturbed.  Our  sense 
of  security  is  so  great,  that  we  frequently  sleep  all  night 
w^ith  our  doors  and  windows  open — this  we  did,  too,  when 


214  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

they  continued  to  kill  our  hogs  and  rob  our  hen-roosts,  until 
we  became  discouraged  and  ceased  to  keep  these  animals 
and  fowls.  We  bought  a  drove  of  cattle  during  the  first 
autumn,  which  we  had  to  sell  out  to  them  finally,  in  self- 
defense — only  keeping  two  milch  cows,  and  one  of  these 
was  "  'stroyed  "  before  sirring  ! 

It  was  hard  to  have  our  cattle  butchered  in  this  way, 
when  we  were  feeding  our  laborers  so  bountifully,  and  they 
''  declaared  it  was  none  ob  de  Hebron  niggers  who  did  it, 
but  de  thieving,  half-starved  niggers  on  de  plantation  be- 
low." But  all  the  time  there  was  a  something  about  their 
manner  of  denial — it  was  boisterous  for  one  thing — 
which  made  us  feel  that  our  own  negroes  were  as  deep  in 
the  mire  as  their  neighbors. 

An  apologist  for  the  negro  might  here  remark  :  "  Their 
master  fed  them  on  salt  meat  alone  ;  the  human  system  de- 
mands a  portion  of  fresh  meat,  and,  failing  to  furnish  this, 
they  simply  took  it.  just  as  the  horse  gnaws  at  his  feed- 
trough,  when  his  hard-hearted  master  denies  him  the  salt 
which  his  system  craves.  Of  course,  this  meat-thieving 
propensity,  being  bred  in  the  bone,  as  one  of  the  fruits  of 
slavery,  could  not  be  uprooted  in  a  day.  In  the  meantime, 
those  of  us  employing  this  recently  enfranchised  race,  must 
necessarily  be  the  sufferers." 

In  striking  contrast  to  the  universal  prevalence  of  petty 
food-thieves,  was  the  entire  absence  of  negro  beggars.  There 
were  really  no  beggars  among  the  black  people  of  the  South. 
To  beg,  is  a  lesson  in  the  march  of  civilization  they  have 
yet  to  learn  !  TThat  they  have  not,  and  can  not  buy  or 
steal,  they  go  without. 

Their  crude  idea  of  marriage  was  both  melancholy  and 
amusing.  I  have  seen  negro  men  marry  negro  women  who 
had  lived  in  open  concubinage  with  a  half-dozen  men  in 
as  many  months.  I  have  seen  negro  boys  not  yet  twenty, 
working  for  from  ten  to  fifteen  dollars  a  month,  marry 
negro  women  of  fifty  and  upwards,  some  of  them  grand- 


NEGRO    PECULIARITIES.  215 

mothers,  with  houses  full  of  children,  the  thought  never 
entering  their  heads  that  such  marriages  were  unnatural, 
or  the  question  how  they  were  to  support  such  broods. 
But  after  all,  this  is  not  so  much  a  matter  of  surprise,  when 
we  remember  that  their  food  and  clothes  had  always  been 
furnished  them,  and  as  slaves,  such  incongruous  "takings- 
up  "  had  been  frequent.  Then  it  did  not  matter  whether 
the  woman  a  man  lived  with  had  one  or  ten  children, — the 
master  fed  and  clothed  them  all,  and  the  more  children,  the 
happier  he  was  ;  and  now  that  they  were  free,  what  was 
more  natural  than  for  them  to  marry,  just  as  they  had  pre- 
viously "  taken-up  " — not  yet  realizing  that  their  freedom 
imposed  on  them  the  task  of  feeding  and  clothing  them- 
selves:  certainly  not  dreaming  of  the  toil  and  sweat  nec- 
essary to  accomplish  that  task. 

They  seemed  to  think  that  marriage  gave  the  wife  the 
power  to  reclaim  her  runaway  husband,  and  vice  versa,  just 
as  their  masters  had  reclaimed  them,  when  they  ran  away. 
The  men  had  the  impression  that  marrying  a  woman  gave 
them  a  kind  of  ownership  in  her,  and  that  they  could  flog 
her  at  will. 

The  feeling  of  "poverty,"  in  the  sense  of  a  lack  of  crea- 
ture comforts,  was  yet  unknown  to  them;  food  and  cloth- 
ing had  come  to  them  in  a  steady  and  never-failing  stream 
while  they  were  slaves,  and  of  money  they  had  lio  actual 
need.  What  they  had  longed  for,  and  what  they  had 
offered  up  their  rude  prayers  for,  was  freedom.  This  had 
absorbed  all  the  avarice  and  covetousness  of  their  natures. 
Wanting  freedom,  they  felt  themselves  to  be  indeed  pov- 
erty-stricken, and  when  the  wealth  of  freedom  was  placed 
in  their  hands,  they  felt  themselves  to  be  rich,  and  what 
more  natural  than  that  they  should  only  come  to  realize  by 
degrees  that  this  freedom  involved  the  necessity  of  earning 
a  support  ?  It  would  only  be  when  this  was  found  to  be  a 
difficult  task  that  the  feeling  of  poverty  in  its  usual  sense 
would  be  realized  by  them.     Then  boys  of  twenty  would 


216  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

not  be  found  marrying  women  twice  or  thrice  their  own 
age,  with  great  broods  of  children,  and  men  even,  would 
hesitate  before  marrying  women  already  thus  incumbered. 

As  for  what  we  call  virtue,  how  could  there  be  any,  when 
during  the  century  of  slavery  the  master  had  used  every  ef- 
fort to  so  mate  his  chattels  as  to  secure  rapid  increase  ?  Ee- 
straint  there  had  been,  because  it  accomplished  this,  not 
because  it  tended  to  morality.  The  blacks,  as  slaves,  had 
no  moral  sense  which  required  a  negro  woman  should 
be  stoned,  or  even  spurned,  because  this  increase  came  to 
her  outside  of  wedlock,  for  there  had  been  no  wedlock 
among  them.  Indeed,  that  negro  woman  who  had  held  an 
immoral  relation  to  some  white  man  was  rather  looked 
upon  as  a  prize  by  the  more  ambitious  negroes.  I  have 
been  told  by  such  a  negro,  with  a  swelling  bosom  and  spark- 
ling eye,  indicating  that  he  considered  it  something  of 
which  to  bo  j^roud,  that  his  woman  had  sustained  this 
relation  to  a  prominent  white  man  of  the  neighborhood. 

Slavery  made  the  negro  a  living  deception.  In  the  pres- 
ence of  master  or  overseer  he  always  wore  a  mask.  In 
this  respect  he  was  a  finished  diplomat.  Address  him,  and 
his  smiling  lips  and  eyes  would  say,  "  yes,  sah,"  while  per- 
haps his  heart  and  brain  would  be  constantly  answering, 
"  no,  sah."  If  master  or  overseer  came  in  wrath,  accusing 
him  of  killing  his  hogs  or  cattle,  he  would  solemnly  "  de- 
clar  'fore  God  "  he  was  innocent,  and  even  if  you  should 
find  the  meat  in  his  house,  he  would  still  "  declar  it  had 
done  been  put  dar  by  some  of  de  lazy,  triflen  niggers  to 
git  him  into  trouble,"  and  then  he  would  call  on  his  dusky 
wife  to  testify  to  his  innocence,  which  testimony  was 
always  at  hand,  ready  made,  and  so  strenuous  and  ap- 
parently sincere  were  these  denials,  that  you  began  to 
think  there  might  have  been  a  plot  against  him,  and  that, 
after  all,  the  man  has  been  wrongfully  accused.  Push  the 
matter  a  little  further,  however,  and  the  mask  was  drop- 


NEGRO    EXPERIENCES.  217 

ped — there  stood  before  you  the  injured,  innocent  man,  a 
thief,  by  hivS  own  confession. 

How  many  thousands  of  masters,  during  the  late  war, 
were  deceived  by  the  constant  assertion  of  their  slaves,  that 
they  "  did  n't  want  freedom,"  to  be  undeceived  whenever 
the  Union  army  passed  their  neighborhood,  when  even  the 
lame,  the  halt,  and  the  blind  flocked  into  the  camp,  to  se- 
cure the  freedom  w^hich  they  had  so  long  prayed  for. 

The  "  lazy  nigger  "  is  a  term  which  the  average  South- 
erner rolls  like  a  sweet  morsel  under  his  tongue.  You  hear 
itconstantly  sounded  in  the  hotels,  on  steamboats, — in  short, 
every-where  throughout  the  South  ;  and  yet,  in  the  very 
nature  of  things,  this  reproach  can  not  be  just.  What !  the 
negro  lazy,  when  slavery  had  inured  him  to  toil !  Men 
are  industrious  or  lazy  from  habit.  Of  tropical  origin,  a 
negro  has  not  the  enterprise  which  colder  climates  engen- 
der, but  you  must  look  elsewhere  to  find  a  lazy  people. 
The  slave  knew  nothing  but  work  ;  from  the  diminutive 
pickaninny  to  the  hoary-headed  "  uncle,"  it  was  work,  work. 
Whatever  else  there  maybe  laid  at  his  door,  certainly  it  is 
not  laziness. 

Finally,  the  negro  in  the  South  is  pretty  much  what 
slavery  made  him.  He  is  its  human  product,  and  it  is, 
to  sa}^  the  least,  bad  taste  on  the  part  of  his  late  masters, 
60  constantly  to  be  finding  fault  with  him. 


CHAPTER  XLIII. 


NEGRO    EXPERIENCES. 


An  army  recuiting  station  was  presently  established  in 
our  neighborhood,  and  the  negroes  went  crazy  over  it. 
10 


218  A    TEAR   OF   WRECK. 

Within  twenty-four  hours  six  of  our  hands  had  enlisted, 
and  more  were  inclined  to  follow  their  example.  A  regi- 
ment might  have  been  recruited  in  a  week. 

We  explained  to  our  laborers  that  these  recruits  were 
wanted  for  the  regular  army — not  for  volunteer  service,  such 
as  they  had  experienced  ;  told  them  of  the  severity  of  dis- 
cipline among  regulars  ;  that  they  would  not  be  allowed  to 
take  their  women  with  them ;  and  how  they  would  be  sent 
out  to  the  far  West  to  fight  Indians — of  the  fearful  snow 
storms  in  that  region,  and  so  on. 

These  statements  seemed  to  dampen  their  ardor,  but  it 
was  plain  to  be  seen  that  many  of  them  were  restive  to  get 
on  their  soldier  clothes  again,  and  go  back  to  camp-life,  even 
at  the  risk  of  all  we  had  described.  Then,  too,  with  the 
negro's  natural  distrust  of  statements  by  white  men,  they 
did  not  believe  more  than  a  quarter  of  our  story.  A  gen- 
eral stampede  was  imminent.  In  our  dilemma,  we  appealed 
to  the  agent  of  the  Freedmen's  Bureau,  who  gave  notice 
that  no  one  under  contract  would  be  allowed  to  enlist,  and 
60  the  recruiting  ofiScer's  occupation  was  gone,  and  he  soon 
folded  his  tents  and  dejDarted.  It  was  really  pleasant,  for 
once,  not  to  hear  "  tatto  "  and  ''reveille,"  for  as  often 
as  they  were  sounded  our  laborers  became  uneasy.  Evi- 
dently, camp-life  had  more  charms  for  them  than  planta- 
tion-life. 

One  moonlight  night,  about  midnight,  before  we  went 
to  the  plantation  to  live,  Dobson  and  myself  were  return- 
ing from  the  wharf -boat,  where  we  had  gone  to  deposit  a 
letter,  when  whom  should  we  encounter — with  a  bundle 
suspended  from  a  stick  over  his  shoulder,  looking  just  as 
we  had  seen  pictures  at  the  head  of  advertisements  for 
runaway  slaves — but  one  of  our  own  laborers,  running 
away  !  We  arrested  him,  and  took  him  into  one  of  the 
back  rooms  of  our  house,  and  with  one  of  those  trace- 
chains  I  bought  at  the  government  sale  in  Kentucky  we 
fastened  him  to  the  floor.     Our  wives  heard  the  clanking 


NEGRO   EXPERIENCES.  219 

of  the  chains  with  fear  and  trembling,  not  knowing  what 
new  danger  had  crossed  our  palhwaj^ ;  and  the  strange 
sounds,  together  with  our  mysterious  whisperings,  excited 
their  most  painful  apprehensions.  Their  nerves  had  al- 
ready been  strung  to  their  utmost  tension  by  an  incident 
earlier  in  the  evening.  A  wounded  man  was  brought  to 
the  house  for  Dobson's  surgical  oflSces.  He  was  quietly 
conveyed  to  the  room  of  Adjutant  Johnson,  when  imme- 
diate demands  for  cloths  to  make  bandages,  warm  water, 
etc.,  had  followed,  with  the  usual  whisperings  in  the  hall, 
the  walking  on  tip-toe,  the  ghost-like  silence  which  broods 
over  a  house  when  a  calamity  is  supposed  to  have  crossed 
its  threshold,  all  heightened  and  intensified  by  the  fact  that 
we  were  living  in  the  midst  of  constant  danger.  This  had 
been  almost  too  much  for  our  wives,  and  now,  before  they 
had  recovered  from  this  first  shock,  came  the  second.  It 
was  a  night  of  horror,  and  the  dawn  found  eyes  which  had 
refused  to  close  in  sleep  red  and  swollen,  and  haggard 
faces. 

The  next  morning  we  carried  our  runaway  to  the  planta- 
tion, and  exhibited  him  as  a  striking  proof  of  our  unceas- 
ing vigilance,  and  as  a  solemn  warning  to  others  who  might 
be  contemplating  a  similar  step.  We  also  reported  his  case 
to  the  agent  of  the  Freedmen's  Bureau,  who  fined  him  fif- 
teen dollars  for  the  benefit  of  the  schools  of  the  county. 
(It  would  have  taken  something  more  effective  than  a 
search-warrant  to  have  found  a  school-house.)  But,  not- 
withstanding the  warning,  a  week  later  another  negro,  be- 
coming jealous  of  his  "  'oman,"  ran  away  in  a  passion. 
We  could  get  no  trace  of  him,  and  finally  gave  him  up  as 
lost.  A  month  later,  however,  we  heard  of  a  man  answer- 
ing his  description,  some  six  miles  below  on  the  river, 
working  at  a  saw-mill.  Procuring  an  order  for  him  from 
the  agent  of  the  Freedman's  Bureau,  we  sent  Billy  to  make 
the  capture,  which  he  did  in  gallant  style,  returning  in  the 
evening  with  his  trophy,  and  bearing  an  insulting  message 


220  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

from  the  saw-mill  man  to  the  Yankee  new-comers,  asking, 
if  they  wanted  their  runaway,  why  they  did  not  come  for 
him  themselves,  and  meet  with  the  warm  reception  which 
he  always  had  ready  for  their  class. 

Some  time  afterwards,  Dobson,  meeting  a  man  of  the 
same  name,  and  being  introduced,  inquired  if  he  was  "the 
saw-mill  man."  The  man  answered  no,  the  saw-mill  man 
was  his  uncle,  but  he  was  responsible  for  any  thing  the 
saw-mill  man  might  do'  or  saj^.  This  answer  was  made 
with  a  flushed  face  and  a  flashing  eye,  indicating  great  an- 
ger, and  was  intended  to  convey  to  Dobson  the  idea  that 
he  stood  ready  to  take  up  the  saw-mill  man's  quarrel,  if  he 
had  one.  Thereupon,  Dobson,  understanding  such  to  be 
his  intimation,  struck  him  with  his  glove.  A  fight  was  im- 
minent on  the  spot,  but  friends  interfered,  and  bloodshed 
was  spared  for  the  time  being. 

Dobson  came  home,  confidently  expecting  a  challenge, 
and,  after  deliberation,  decided  to  accept  it. 

"  I  am  living  in  a  country  where  the  code  of  honor  is  in 
vogue,  and  although  I  abominate  the  practice  of  dueling, 
yet  I  am  in  Eome  and  must  do  as  Rome  does,"  said  he,  and 
then  set  to  work  oiling  up  a  couple  of  ugly-looking  navy 
sixes,  showing  plainly  that  he  meant  just  what  he  said. 

Eut  the  challenge  never  came,  and  nothing  further  was 
ever  heard  of  the  afi"air.  But  Dobson  gained  considerable 
eclat  among  those  of  the  neighborhood  who  were  constantly 
boasting  that  they  recognized  the  code  of  honor,  and  talk- 
ing of  affairs  between  gentlemen.  He  had  felt  the  insult- 
ing message  sent  us  by  the  saw-mill  man,  and  when  he 
supposed  he  was  being  introduced  to  him,  he  spoke  with  a 
sneer  the  words  "saw-mill  man,"  intending  to  insult  him — 
that,  too,  when  the  latter  was  surrounded  by  his  friends, 
some  half  dozen  or  more,  while  there  were  only  two  in  the 
party  Dobson  could  count  on  as  friends. 

It  was  really  our  first  open  difficulty  based  on  sectional 
feelin*t>s,  and  Dobson  sent  his  man  to  the  wall. 


NEGRO    EXPERIENCES.  221 

Following  close  upon  the  heels  of  this  second  capture, 
three  of  our  laborers  were  missing  one  morning.  We 
traced  them  to  a  point  where  they  had  crossed  the  Missis- 
sippi. We  then  procured  an  order  for  them  from  the  agent 
of  the  Freedman's  Bureau,  had  ourselves  ferried  across  the 
river,  and  found  our  runaways  chopping  cord-wood.  By 
virtue  of  our  order,  which,  being  of  national  authority, 
was  not  limited  by  State  lines,  we  took  into  custody  in  one 
State  the  fugitives  from  another,  recrossed  the  river,  and 
returned  with  them  to  the  plantation  in  triumph.  The 
agent  of  the  Bureau  imposed  a  fine  on  them  of  twenty-five 
dollars  apiece  for  school  purposes  in  the  county. 

One  Sunday  there  was  a  very  severe  and  brutal  case  of 
woman-whipping.  We  sent  for  the  parties  and  they  came 
to  our  office,  reeking  with  blood.  It  was  the  inevitable 
story  of  adultery.  A\"e  started  Billy  to  town  with  the  cul- 
prit, with  orders  to  take  him  to  the  Freedmen's  Bureau  for 
investigation  and  p)unishment.  Billy  rode  with  a  pistol  in 
his  hand  and  the  offender  went  on  foot  before  him,  but  be- 
fore he  had  got  out  of  the  quarters  a  consj)iracy  was  or- 
ganized among  some  of  the  negroes,  who  boldly  marched 
out  and  took  the  prisoner  away  from  him.  Billy  came  back 
crest-fallen. 

The  situation  looked  serious.  Here  was  a  manifest  attempt 
to  excite  a  riot ;  but  it  was  best  not  to  act  hastily.  After 
deliberation,  we  decided  to  report  the  whole  case  to  the 
agent  of  the  Freedmen's  Bureau  the  followinir  mornino- 
— in  the  mean  time  we  would  not  say  a  word  on  the 
subject.  This  was  a  wise  course  to  pursue,  for  the  rea- 
son that  it  was  different  from  what  the  rioters  had  ex- 
pected, and  our  perfect  unconcern  alarmed  them.  The 
next  morning  the  ring-leaders  were  all  arrested  by  order 
of  the  Freedmens'  Bureau,  and  after  investigation  the 
agent  read  the  riot  act  to  them,  administered  a  severe  lec- 
ture, and  fined  them  twenty -five  dollars  apiece. 

Thus  we  plodded  on,  such  being  our  difficulties  in  the 


222  A   YEAR  OP   WRECK. 

discipline  of  our  force  of  labor.  Manifestly,  more  than  one 
year  must  pass  before  these  babes  in  the  role  of  freedom 
would  become  effective  free-laborers.  So  long  deprived  of 
their  freedom,  and  having  now  the  crudest  ideas  of  its  true 
meaning,  they  were  mistaking  discipline  for  an  attempt  to 
rob  them  of  their  priceless  treasure. 


CHAPTER  XLIV. 

ANTAGONISM    BETWEEN     SOLDIERS    AND    '•  STAY-AT-HOMES  " — 
THE    NEW-COMER   THE    VICTIM. 

The  statement  is  often  made  that  the  soldiers  of  either 
army,  as  a  class,  having  done  their  fighting  during  the  war, 
when  it  was  over  had  no  bitterness  of  heart,  but  acquiesced 
in  the  result  frankly  and  freely,  and  that  those  who  were 
talking  so  loud,  and  uttering  such  extreme  sentiments  on 
either  side,  after  peace  was  declared,  were  those  who  had 
never  been  in  the  army — the  "  stay-at-homes,"  as  they  were 
called.  Question  a  Federal  or  Confederate  soldier  or  officer 
on  the  subject,  and  he  would  be  almost  certain  to  tell  you 
that  he  had  seen  quite  enough  fighting.  Question  one  of 
the  "stay-at-homes,"  and  he  would  be  almost  certain  to 
grumble  at  the  results  of  the  war,  and  want  more  of  it. 

The  correctness  of  this  statement  was  forcibly  illustrated 
by  two  citizens  of  our  county.  The  soldier's  name  was 
Chapman — Capt.  Chapman.  His  record  in  the  Confed- 
erate army  was  unexceptionable.  Entering  its  service  at 
the  outbreak  of  the  war  as  a  private,  he  went  up  through 
the  different  grades  of  promotion,  for  bravery  on  the  battle- 
field and  fidelity  to  every  duty  in  camp,  until  at  the  close 
of  the  war  he  held  a  Captain's  commission.    He  was  taken 


SOLDIERS   AND   STAY-AT-IIOMES,    ETC.  223 

prisoner  in  battle  and  conveyed  to  Johnson's  Island,  in  Lake 
Erie,  where  for  months  he  was  confined,  until  he  made  his 
escape  one  cold  winter's  night  on  the  ice,  in  the  midst  of 
a  blinding  snow-storm.  His  experiences  in  getting  back 
into  the  Confederate  lines  after  his  escape,  poorly  clad  as  he 
was,  encountering  for  the  first  time  in  his  life  the  rigors 
of  a  Northern  winter,  in  the  country  of  his  enemies,  were 
rough  in  the  extreme,  and  his  escape  from  detection — his 
manner,  his  Southern  dialect,  and  his  dress,  all  making 
him  a  marked  man — was  a  marvel.  His  service  dated 
from  the  first  battle  of  Manassas  until  Lee's  surrender,  and 
he  participated  in  most  of  the  numberless  hard-fought 
battles  between  AVashington  and  Eichmond.  When  he  re- 
turned home,  after  the  muster-out,  there  was  not  a  blot  on 
his  record  ;  on  the  contrary,  his  army  career  was  filled  with 
deeds  of  courage  and  devotion  to  the  Confederate  cause. 

So  brave  and  constant  in  his  services  to  the  South,  if  any 
one  had  earned  the  right  to  speak  for  his  section,  Captain 
Chapman  was  certainly  that  one.  And  he  did  speak,  not 
joyously,  but  soberly  and  as  a  war-worn  veteran,  though 
still  a  youth  in  years,  should  have  spoken. 

"  The  war  is  over,"  said  he,  "  and  I  accept  the  result." 
And  he  spoke  so  frankly  and  with  so  much  candor  that  he 
was  intrusted  with  the  position  of  agent  for  the  Freedmen's 
Bureau  in  the  county.  He  was  selected  to  fill  this  delicate 
and  onerous  position  by  a  Federal  army  officer  who  visited 
the  locality — and  who,  like  Captain  Chapman,  had  been 
through  the  war,  which  had  taken  all  the  bitterness  out  of 
him.  When  he  found  this  late  Confederate  officer  thus 
accepting  the  situation,  he  conferred  upon  him  this  Fed- 
eral appointment.  It  was  the  trust  of  the  late  soldier  of 
the  victorious  army  in  the  soldier  of  the  vanquished 
army.     And  it  was  practical  reconstruction. 

What  should  have  been  more  acceptable  to  the  i:>eoplo 
here  than  to  have  the  rej^resentative  of  the  freedmen  taken 
from  their  midst,  in  the  person  of  one  of  their  own  brave, 


224  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

devoted  officers  ?  And  yet  the  "stay-at-homes  "  howled  at 
him,  turned  up  their  noses  at  him,  and  made  him  feel  very 
uncomfortable;  and  the  "stay-at-homes"  in  the  ]N'orth 
would  have  condemned  the  Federal  officer,  if  they  had  been 
informed  of  this  appointment.  There  were  brave  Confed- 
erate officers  and  soldiers,  like  Captain  Chapman,  who 
could  see  no  harm  in  his  accepting  this  position,  but  the 
'•'  stay-at-homes  "  were  the  noisy  ones,  and  at  this  time  the 
noisy  ones  made  the  public  sentiment.  To  have  under- 
taken to  controvert  them  would  be  charged  against  the 
person  attempting  it  as  "  going  back  on  the  South." 

And  so,  Avhile  Captain  Chapman  had  courageously  stood 
before  the  shot  and  shell  of  the  Federal  armies  on  at  least 
fifty  battle-fields,  and  while  other  Confederate  officers  and 
soldiers  in  our  neighborhood  had  done  likewise,  neither  he 
nor  they  had  the  courage  to  face  this  loudly  expressed  sen- 
timent, by  a  public  expression  to  the  contrary;  and,  as  a 
result,  he  quietly  dropped  out  of  this  position,  where,  true 
to  the  Southern  people  as  he  was,  and  true  to  the  best 
interests  of  the  negro  as  he  would  have  been,  he  might 
have  rendered  such  faithful  and  satisfactory  service ;  and  a 
stranger  was  brought  into  the  county  to  do  the  work  in- 
stead. Was  it  not  the  loud-mouthed  "  stay-at-homes  " 
who  were  responsible  for  the  importation  of  this  first  car- 
pet-bagger ? 

Captain  Chapman  was  one  of  the  very  few  who  openly 
welcomed  us  to  the  county.  He  called  on  us  promptly  and 
without  ceremony,  and  seemed  to  take  solid  comfort  in 
the  companionship  of  General  Dobson,  the  two  recalling 
stories  of  camp-life  by  the  hour.  He  made  a  dinner  party 
for  us,  to  which  he  invited  three  or  four  of  his  own  army 
friends  who  accepted  ;  and  this  we  had  reciprocated,  so 
that  a  pleasant  companionship  was  growing  about  us. 

In  the  meantime,  the  "  stay-at-homes  "  were  holding 
caucuses  over  what  was  going  on,  and  they  finally  deter- 
mined that  it  would  not  do  to  fraternize  with  the  new- 


SOLDIERS,    STAY-AT-HOMES,    ETC.  225 

comers  in  that  way,  and  again  Captain  Chapman  was  sin- 
gled out  as  the  man  who  had  first  committed  the  overt  act. 
True,  they  said,  General  Hampson  had  promptly  called  on 
our  wives,  with  a  red  rose  in  his  button -hole,  but  that  was 
simply  a  state  call,  and  on  the  same  principle  that  men 
personally  antagonistic  to  each  other  frequently  have  offi- 
cial intercourse  ; — as  he  had  sold  us  our  plantation,  he  must 
go  through  the  forms  of  an  official  welcome,  Avhich  was  all 
he  intended  in  the  simple  call  he  had  made.  It  would  do, 
where  Southern  men  either  sold  or  rented  to,  or  went  into 
"pardnership  "  with  the  new-comers,  for  them  to  make  an 
official  show  of  friendliness,  and  the  Southern  merchants 
would  have  to  be  officially  friendly  to  our  class  in  order  to 
get  our  trade  ;  Southern  doctors  and  lawyers  might  be  al- 
lowed to  take  our  practice  and  be  on  professional  terms 
with  us  ;  but  no  true  Southerner  would  be  allowed  to  ac- 
cept any  position  under  the  "  Yankee  government,"  under 
penalty  of  being  excommunicated  from  Southern  society, 
and  branded  as  an  enemy  of  the  South.  ^Not  that  the 
"  stay-at-homes  "  said  all  this  in  so  many  words,  though 
most  of  it  they  did  say,  but  it  was  a  code  which  they 
lived  up  to,  with  a  fidelity  not  second  to  their  hatred  of 
the  class  it  was  aimed  at. 

Captain  Chapman  was  a  lawyer,  and  there  were  other 
lawyers,  who  had  been  brave  Confederate  officers,  who 
secretly  did  not  sympathize  with  this  sentiment,  nor  act 
upon  it,  such  as  Captains  Falconer,  De  Bar  and  "Whitely, 
though  none  of  them  opposed  it  openly,  and  in  this  way 
all  gave  it  an  indorsement.  The  ''  stay-at-homes  "  raised 
the  red  flag,  with  the  cry  of  "  going  back  on  the  South," 
and,  with  the  despotism  of  public  sentiment  still  ruling 
them,  every  Southern  man  had  to  appear  to  come  into 
camp,  and  our  little  band  of  new-comers  were  left  on  the 
outside,  to  be  raided  and  foraged  upon,  and  made  targets, 
but  never  to  be  allowed  companionship.     We  were  made 

to  understand,  by  the  public  manner  toward  us,  that  it  was 
10* 


226  A    YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

a  great  concession  for  a  Southerner  to  be  seen  talking  with 
us  in  an  apparently  friendly  way.  Occasionally  we  would 
be  met  in  a  secluded  spot  on  the  levee,  as  we  were  riding 
along,  by  some  one  of  the  small  class  who,  as  we  fancied, 
chafed  a  little  under  the  restraint  of  this  public  sentiment 
against  us,  but,  before  speaking  to  us,  we  could  observe 
him  cast  a  furtive  glance  up  and  down  the  levee  to  see  if 
any  one  was  coming.  Seeing  no  one,  he  would  stop  and 
chat  jDleasantly ;  but  if  any  body  was  in  sight,  he  would 
pass  on.  Sometimes  there  was  a  friendly  remark  drojoped 
in  our  ears  in  a  half-frightened  manner  as  we  passed  through 
the  village,  and  sometimes  there  was  only  a  friendly  nod  or 
look,  but  in  every  case  w^henever  we  were  treated  as  we 
had  been  treated  at  home,  it  was,  as  a  general  rule,  done 
by  stealth.  It  was  as  if  we  were  so  many  criminals,  of 
whose  acquaintance  one  should  be  ashamed.  As  for  any 
one  calling  upon  us,  or  taking  up  the  cudgels  for  us,  that 
was  out  of  the  question. 

Not  only  the  Southern  ladies  refused  to  call  on  our 
wives,  but  when  they  chanced  to  meet  us  or  them  on  the 
public  roadway,  they  would  drop  their  veils,  and  turn 
their  faces  away ;  and  if,  by  some  chance,  we  got  a  glimpse 
of  their  features,  tbe  expression  was  any  thing  but  compli- 
mentary to  us.  In  passing  us,  along  the  levee,  these 
Southern  women  would  draw  up  their  riding  habits,  as  if 
in  fear  of  contamination  should  Northern  and  Southern 
riding  skirts  come  in  contact. 

It  was  said  that  Captain  Chapman,  with  his  Confederate 
army  friends,  who  had  dined  with  us,  was  sharply  criti- 
cized by  the  women — who  were,  one  and  all,  along  with 
the  mischievous  boys  (the  mischievous  boys  having  been, 
for  the  most  part,  "  stay-at-homes  ")  the  staunch  allies  of 
the  "stay-at-home"  element — for  having  any  thing  to  do 
with  the  hated  Yankees,  and  some  went  even  so  far  as  to  cut 
his  acquaintance  in  consequence.    Captain  Chapman  was  full 


SOLDIERS,    STAY-AT-IIOMES,    ETC.  227 

of  mettle,  and  though  seeming  to  acquiesce,  illy  brooked 
this  treatment. 

The  "stay-at-home"  leader  was  Captain  Tyler  of  the 
wharf-boat.  lie  had,  it  seems,  been  a  Confederate  guer- 
rilla, except  for  a  brief  period,  when  he  was  a  conscript 
oflScer.  He  had  never  even  seen  a  battle.  This  man  was  all 
the  more  dangerous,  because  he  had  an  outward  show  of 
liberality.  But  some  of  his  most  lucrative  patrons  were 
new-comers,  and  the  code  allowed  him  to  appear  officially 
liberal.  A  coldness  grew  up  between  Tyler  and  Chapman, 
and,  one  day,  when  the  latter  went  down  to  the  wharf-boat, 
in  his  official  capacity  as  lawyer,  to  collect  five  dollars  from 
Tyler,  Tyler  disputed  the  claim.  Hot  words  ensued;  the 
lie  was  given,  and  Chapman,  who  was  unarmed,  was  told 
to  go  off  and  j^repare  himself  He  liad  got  half  way  up 
the  bank,  from  the  wharf-boat,  on  his  way  to  do  this,  when 
Tyler,  who  stepped  out  on  the  guards,  pistol  in  hand,  called 
out  to  him,  "  Look  out,  there  !"  and  then  instantly  fired,  the 
ball  entering  the  heart  of  Chapman,  who  fell  a  corpse. 
And  thus  tragically  ended  the  career  of  this  brave  Confed- 
erate officer,  who  so  frankly  accepted  the  situation,  and 
who  was  able  to  see  far  enough  into  the  future  to  know 
that  immigration  here  should  be  treated  as  it  is  treated 
elsewhere,  and  that  such  treatment  was  for  the  best  interest 
of  the  South. 

Was  not  this  young  man  a  martyr  to  the  cause?  For 
four  years  he  braved  the  shock  of  battle,  to  assist  in 
making  the  South  an  independent  Confederacy,  and  now 
he  lay  there,  in  his  blood,  indirectly  a  victim  to  a  senti- 
ment which  had  only  the  desire  to  make  his  section  part 
and  parcel  of  a  prosperous  nation.  Because  he  was  not 
willing  to  regard  the  new-comers  as  public  enemies  or  con- 
victs :  to  treat  them  as  if  they  were  gold  mines,  and 
therefore  to  be  drilled  into  with  iron  pikes,  blasted  with 
gunpowder,  and  ground  in  quartz  mills ;  or  shun  them  as 
if  they  were  bearers  of  pestilence — a  quarrel  over  the  joaltry 


228  A   YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

sum  of  five  dollars  must  end  his  career.  This  was  a  sol- 
emn warning  to  all  who  contemplated  accepting  the  situa- 
tion, that  they  should  not  do  so. 

Tyler  was  arrested,  bailed  (only  think  of  bail  for  cold- 
blooded murder !),  and,  finally  acquitted.  A  hundred  times 
have  I  heard  that  it  was  said  of  this  victim:  "It  served 
him  right,  for  having  any  thing  to  do  with  the  Yankee 
new-comers." 

Just  about  this  time  another  most  touching  incident  oc- 
curred. I  had.  shortly  after  our  arrival,  employed  a  plas- 
terer to  repair  a  cistern  at  our  home  near  the  village,  and 
to  plaster  some  of  the  cracked  and  broken  walls.  He  was 
an  Irishman,  and  had  all  the  blarney  of  his  race  at  his 
tongue's  end. 

''  It  is  a  sin  and  a  shame,"  said  he  to  Mrs.  Harding,  as  he 
was  working  away  at  the  walls,  "that  none  of  the  ladies 
of  the  counthry  calls  on  ye ;  for  the  loikes  of  ye  I  niver 
saw  this  side  of  the  ould  country."  Again,  he  said,  "  Ye's 
must  be  so  lonesome  sure,  with  none  o'  the  people  of 
the  counthry  callin'  on  ye's,  and  yit  ye's  ivery  bit  as  good 
as  the  bist  of  'em.  And  yer  husband  is  a  good  mon,  sure, 
and  wourks  so  hard — he  is  a  good  citizen,  and  that  he  is, 
intirely."  And  he  would  plaster  and  blarney  away,  when- 
ever Mrs.  Harding  would  pass  through  the  room  where 
he  was  at  work.  "  Xiver  mind,  me  good  lady,"  he  ex- 
claimed another  day,  "I'll  bring  Mrs.  Birch  an'  me 
daaters  to  call"  on  ye  next  Sunday.  It's  too  bad  intirely 
for  the  loikes  of  ye  to  be  pinin'  for  the  wants  of  conjanial 
society  when  I  can  give  it  to  ye.  Nather  Mrs.  Birch  nor 
me  daaters  are  proud,  and  we  'd  niver  be  ashamed  to  call 
on  the  loikes  of  ye,  aven  though  none  of  the  rist  of  the  la- 
dies of  the  counthry  come  to  see  ye." 

Mrs.  Harding  thought  his  talk  all  blarney;  but  not 
so,  for  the  next  Sunday  all  came,  in  their  sun-bonnets, 
check  aprons,  calico  dresses,  and  with  their  hearts  in  their 
mouths.     Mr.  Birch  marshaled  the  party.     It  was  none  of 


SOLDIERS,    STAY-AT-HOMES,    ETC.  229 

yoiii*  fashionable  calls  of  three  minutes,  but  a  good,  solid 
hour's  sitting,  with  a  world  of  heart  and  good  intentions  in 
it,  and  with  plenty  of  Irish  talk,  not  necessary  to  repeat 
here.  Mrs.  Harding  passed  around  the  doughnuts,  apples, 
and  wine  with  a  will.  Not  that  she  was  really  pining  for  so- 
ciety— but  it  was  something  at  which  to  be  gratified,  that 
there  was  one  family,  at  least,  even  though  it  was  simply  that 
of  a  plasterer,  who  did  not  shun  us  as  if  we  were  mad  dogs. 
It  was  a  tribute,  on  the  part  of  this  kind-hearted  Irish- 
man and  his  kind-hearted  family,  to  what  they  conceived 
to  be  our  loneliness.  And  there  was  daring  in  it,  too,  be- 
cause this  man  had  to  draw  his  support  from  these  fiery 
and  prejudiced  Southerners,  and  when  himself  and  family 
came  and  called  on  Mrs.  Harding,  that  beautiful  Sun- 
day, they  virtually  arrayed  the  sentiment  of  the  country 
against  them.  It  was  as  if  they  had  taken  sides  with  the 
new-comers.  And  shortly  after  that,  whether  it  resulted 
from  this  call  or  not  I  can  not  say,  the  sister  of  the  wharf- 
boatman,  Tyler,  who  was  a  teacher,  was  said  to  have 
whipped  one  of  the  Misses  Birch,  who  was  one  of  her  pu- 
pils, unmercifully.  Her  brothers,  a  pair  of  courageous 
boys,  took  exception  to  it,  and  boldly  went  to  the  wharf- 
boat,  to  face  Captain  Tyler,  who  had  taken  up  his  sister's 
quarrel,  if  he  was  not  its  instigator. 

In  the  melee  which  followed,  Tyler  got  a  discharge  of 
buckshot  in  his  groin,  from  a  gun  in  the  hands  of  one  of 
the  Birches,  from  which  he  narrowly  escaped  with  his  life, 
and  which  left  him  a  cripple  for  the  rest  of  his  days. 

Need  I  say  that  this  Sunday  call  touched  a  chord  in  our 
feelings  which  has  never  ceased  to  vibrate,  as  often  as  we 
think  of  it.  And  while  speaking  of  this  Irish  j^lasterer 
and  his  family,  I  wish  to  bear  tribute  to  the  fact  that  the 
entire  Irish  element,  a  considerable  one  in  our  little  village 
— most  of  whom  dated  their  residence  here  from  before  the 
war,  and  were  brave  soldiers  in  the  Confederate  army — al- 


230  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

ways  treated  us  well,  and  they  showed  more  courage  in 
braving  the  public  sentiment  we  are  describing  than  any 
other  class. 


CHAPTEE  XLV. 

LIEUTENANT    BLAIR,    U.    S.  A. 

One  morning,  shortly  after  our  arrival,  while  we  were  at 
breakfast,  the  unusual  sound  of  a  knock  was  heard  at  our 
front  door,  and  George  came  back  with  the  still  more  un- 
usual announcement  that  a  white  "  gen'man  "  wanted  to 
see  Mr.  Harding,  but  said,  "  Tell  him  1  'm  in  no  hurry ;  to 
finish  his  breakfast  at  his  leisure,  and  if  convenient  for  him 
to  see  me  afterward,  I  will  be  glad." 

With  this  announcement,  George  laid  at  my  plate  a 
neatly  engraved  card,  which  bore  in  JRoman  letters  the 
name  of  "  Lieutenant  Blair,  U.  S.  A."  ]S'ot  willing  to  let 
a  representative  of  the  army  wait  on  me  a  moment,  1 
at  once  went  to  my  office  sitting-room,  into  which  George 
had  shown  him,  to  welcome  the  stranger  under  our  roof, 
and  to  invite  him  to  join  us  at  our  morning  meal,  as  the 
hour  was  so  early  I  felt  all  but  certain  he  had  not  yet 
taken  breakfast. 

A  young  man  rose  from  his  seat,  and  stepped  forward  to 
meet  me,  saying  :  "  I  suppose  I  have  the  pleasure  of  ad- 
dressing John  Harding  ?" 

I  replied  :  "  Yes.     Will  you  not  join  us  at  breakfast?" 

"  Thank  you,  sir,"  he  said,  '•  I  will  be  glad  to  do  so.  I 
got  off  at  the  wharf-boat  in  the  night,  and  have  been  sitting 
there  ever  since,  waiting  for  daylight  to  come  ;  and  though 
Tyler  urged  me  to  stay  for  breakfast,  I  declined,  as  I  felt 
quite  certain  of  a  welcome  here,  and  thought  more  than 
likelv  I  should  stumble  on  you  at  your  morning  meal,  when 


LIEUTENANT   BLAIR.   U.   S.    A.  231 

I  intended  to  make  bold  and  invite  myself — if  it  did  not 
occur  to  you  to  do  so,"  he  added,  laughing, — "but  it  did 
occur,  and  I  am  quite  ready  to  join  you  at  once." 

And  so  we  went  out  to  the  breakfast  room,  where,  after 
introduction  to  Mrs.  Harding  and  Adjutant  Johnson,  Lieu- 
tenant Blair  was  placed  in  the  seat  of  honor. 

The  new-comer  was  in  figure  spare — his  weight  being 
about  one  hundred  and  twenty  pounds — and  six  feet  in 
height.  His  eyes  were  his  striking  feature  ;  sometimes 
they  were  grey,  sometimes  hazel,  and  then  they  would  ap- 
pear dark  enough  to  be  called  black,  but  whichever  hue 
they  assumed,  their  language  was  almost  as  readily  under- 
stood as  his  uttered  words  :  fidelity,  sincerity,  enthusiasm, 
honesty,  and  true  goodness  were  mirrored  in  them,  with 
perhaps  a  preponderance  of  enthusiasm.  All  his  features 
were  good.  The  rims  of  his  ears,  even,  stood  well  out  from 
his  head,  as  if  bent  on  catching  the  slightest  sound,  and  his 
nose  came  sharply  to  a  point,  as  if  it  were  made  to  force 
its  owner  through  the  world,  while  the  nostrils  ever  and 
anon  distended,  as  if  on  the  scent  for  the  main  chance.  The 
veins  showed  themselves  on  the  back  of  his  hands,  as 
large  as  good-sized  cording — across  his  temples  also,  where 
they  were  delicate  threads;  and  in  both  cases  very  blue  ; 
and  over  his  pure,  white  forehead,  they  were  strongly  de- 
fined. There  were  good,  stout,  sinewy  chords  running 
down  the  back  of  his  neck,  which  was  slender  and  long, 
and  the  way  he  carried  his  head  showed  that  there  was 
no  lack  of  communication  between  that  and  his  heart. 
Applying  these  horse-tests  to  him,  there  was  shown  to 
be  gentle  blood  in  his  veins.  He  bore  his  part  in  the  con- 
versation in  that  easy,  off-hand  manner,  which  camp  and 
army  experience  gives  one,  and  at  the  same  time,  shut  out 
from  woman  kind,  as  the  soldier  is,  with  something  of 
bashfulness  resulting  from  that  fact, — as  he  told  me  after- 
ward, that  he  had  seen  absolutely  nothing  of  female  so- 
ciety in  his  four  years  of  army-life,  and  the  very  sight 


232  A   YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

of  a  woman  made  him  tremble.     Altogether  he  was  a  "  tak- 
ing "  fellow. 

Breakfast  over,  and  back  in  my  office  sitting-room,  he 
opened  his  satchel,  and  took  from  it  a  bundle  of  news- 
papers, which  he  handed  me,  saying,  "  There  are  some 
New  York  and  New  Orleans  papers.  I  thought  it  would  n't 
come  amiss  to  bring  them  off  the  steamboat  for  you ;  I 
fancy  you  do  n't  get  the  newspapers  every  day,  and  no  per- 
son but  one  like  you,  who  has  always  been  used  to  them, 
knows  what  it  is  to  be  deprived  of  them." 

I  thanked  him  for  his  thoughtfulness,  and  handed  him  a 
cigar. 

'•  I  am  obliged  to  you,  sir,"  he  said  ;  "  I  never  smoked  a 
cigar,  or  chewed  a  quid  of  tobacco,  or  drank  a  drop  of  any 
kind  of  liquor  in  my  life,  except  medicinally."  And  then 
he  told  me  his  story. 

"  I  am  from  New  Jersey  ;  my  mother  and  two  sisters  are 
all  who  are  left  of  a  family  of  seven  in  the  old  home  there. 
When  the  war  came  on,  I  was  a  student  at  Yale,  twenty 
vears  of  age  ;  my  future,  the  ministry.  Young  as  I  was,  I 
could  not  see  my  country  in  danger  without  assisting  in 
its  rescue;  and  so  I  went  into  the  army  as  a  private,  and 
was  only  mustered  out  the  other  day  in  New  Orleans,  with 
the  rank  of  first  Lieutenant.  Towards  the  close  of  the 
war,  I  was  on  the  staff  of  Gen.  Jarvis,  in  whose  brigade 
was  a  negro  regiment,  which  was  recruited  in  the  South — 
and  from  among  the  late  slaves.  That  regiment  was  mus- 
tered out  at  the  same  time  I  was,  which  brings  me  to  the 
subject  nearest  my  heart,  Mr.  Harding.  1  am  in  love  with 
this  country,  and  am  fully  determined  to  be  a  cotton- 
planter.  In  the  way  of  money  I  have  about  three  hundred 
and  fifty  dollars,  saved  in  the  army,  which  is,  of  course, 
too  little  to  enable  me  to  rent  and  stock  a  whole  plantation. 
All  I  can  hope  to  do  this  year,  is  to  get  some  sort  of  a 
foot-hold.  I  have  dedicated  my  life  to  this  pursuit,  and  do 
not  intend  to  allow  any  obstacle  to  turn  me  aside.     I  have 


LIEUTENANT    BLAIR,  U.  S.  A.  233 

secured  from  the  negro  regiment  which  was  mustered  out 
when  I  was,  some  forty  choice  hands,  who  are  now  on  the 
sugar-coast  waiting  for  me  to  find  a  location,  when  I  am  to 
go  and  fetch  them.  I  have  walked  part  of  the  way  from 
New  Orleans,  the  better  to  see  the  country.  I  thought 
may  be  you  might  need  more  laborers  than  you  have,  and  in 
consideration  of  my  bringing  mine,  and  putting  them  on 
your  plantation,  you  would  find  it  to  your  interest  to  em- 
ploy me  as  assistant  manager,  besides  renting  me  fifty 
acres  which  I  could  cultivate  with  four  or  five  of  the  hands 
from  my  force  of  forty,  using  my  three  hundred  and  fifty 
dollars  and  the  salary  you  might  be  willing  to  pay  me  to 
help  make  my  crop — you  to  advance  whatever  sum  1  might 
be  short,  taking  your  pay  out  of  the  cotton  I  would  raise." 

I  told  him  we  were  just  then  short  of  laborers,  but  that  I 
had  written  Gen.  Dobson,  my  partner,  to  bring  us  more; 
these  I  expected  shortly  to  receive,  when  we  would  have 
a  full  supply,  otherwise  I  should  be  glad  to  make  some  ar- 
rangement with  him. 

Our  guest  was  much  disappointed  at  my  reply ;  but  he 
said,  courageously,  and  with  enthusiasm  shooting  from  his 
eyes,  '*  I  shall  expect  to  meet  many  obstacles,  but  I  am 
firml}-  resolved  to  meet  them  with  fortitude,  and  to  over- 
come them.  I  know  I  shall  succeed,"  he  continued,  as  if 
thinking  aloud  ;  "  I  have  been  out  the  best  part  of  a  month 
now,  and  without  finding  an  opening  ;  but  I  shall  find  one 
if  I  persevere,  and  persevere  I  will,  for  sooner  than  sur- 
render this  passion  of  mine,"  he  said  with  a  glow,  "I  will 
hire  myself  out  as  a  day-laborer  on  some  plantation,  and 
so  start  from  the  lowest  round.  I  am  willin<r  to  irive  five 
years  of  my  life,  if  necessary,  to  get  a  foot-hold  here — yes, 
twenty  years,"  he  added,  as  if  taking  a  second  thought. 
"  My  mother  and  sisters,  whom  I  haven't  seen  since  enter- 
ing the  service,  now  nearly  four  years,  implore  me  to  come 


234  A    YEAR    OF    WRECK. 

home,  but  their  letters  do  not  move  mo  in  the  least  from  the 
accomplishment  of  my  purpose." 

"  Are  you  so  fond  of  money,"  I  inquired,  "that  you  are 
ready  to  hazard  and  endure  so  much?" 

"  Of  course,"  he  replied,  "  money  is  the  main  thing, 
though  it  is  not  all:  here  is  work  that  is  to  be  done  in 
bringing  up  thefreedmen  to  a  standard  of  usefulness,  help- 
ing them  to  find  the  right  road  in  their  journey  as  free 
men,  and  the  development  of  this  country  under  the  new 
dis2)ensation.  I  feel  that  the  work  of  the  war  is  only  half 
done,  and  as  if  I  should  n't  be  blessed  if  I  leave  this  coun- 
try now.  1  firmly  believe  there  is  no  part  of  the  country 
where  there  is  such  a  future  for  young  men  as  this.  I 
have  my  own  fortune  to  make,  and  right  here  I  intend  to 
make  it." 

Never  have  I  seen  such  enthusiasm  as  this  young  man 
evinced,  unless  in  the  case  of  Adjutant  Johnson,  though  in 
this  instance  there  was  the  closely-knit,  sinewy  frame,  with 
no  disease  gnawing,  canker-like,  at  the  vitals.  So  far  as 
health  went,  he  seemed  to  be  able  to  encounter  all  the  fu- 
ture might  have  in  store  for  him,  in  this  rough  country.  In 
looking  at  this  young  hero  as  he  sat  there  all  on  fire  with 
his  subject,  it  made  me  hope  that  there  would  be  no  such 
word  as  fail  in  his  case. 

I  urged  him  to  sj^end  a  day  or  two  with  us,  but  he  de- 
clined with  thanks,  saying  :  "  There  is  no  time  to  be  lost; 
the  season  is  advancing,  and  I  must  get  located  some  where. 
I  have  been  out  so  long  now  that  I  fear  my  laborers  will  get 
uneasy  at  not  hearing  from  me.  Can  you  recommend  me 
to  any  planter  here,  where  I  would  be  likely  to  make  an 
arrangement  like  the  one  I  have  just  j)roposed  to  you?  1 
like  the  first  glance  at  your  county  very  much,"  and  he  was 
pleased  to  add,  "  I  should  like  to  plant  myself  near  you." 

"  ]N'o,"  I  said,  "  I  know  of  no  place  ;  the  fact  is,  I  am  kept 
so  close  at  my  work  that  I  know  absolutel}'  nothing  of  our 
neighbors'  wants,  but  every  body  is  needing  labor,  and  I 


LIEUTENANT    BLAIR,  U.  S.  A.  235 

should  think  you  might  get  a  foot-hold,  by  virtue  of  the 
labor  you  say  you  control,  almost  any  where."  He  replied, 
after  a  few  moments  thought :  "  I  will  go  on  up  the  river 
a  little  further,  and  then,  if  I  can  not  find  any  place,  I  will 
cross  over  and  so  follow  on  down  on  the  other  side." 

I  offered  to  loan  him  a  mule  to  ride  a  few  miles  on  his 
way,  but  he  said  he  would  much  prefer  to  walk,  and  so, 
after  a  "  good  morning,"  and  a  promise  to  write  after  he 
got  settled,  with  his  satchel  on  a  cotton-wood  stick  slung 
over  his  shoulder,  he  trudged  off,  as  many  another  poor 
young  man  had  trudged  along  who  afterward  came  to 
be  a  millionaire.  I  must  have  looked  a  little  sadly  at  him 
as  he  started  to  move  off  with  his  long  soldier  stride — tell- 
ing its  story  of  years  of  experience  in  marching,  for  he 
called  out : 

"  Do  not  fear  for  me,  Mr.  Harding ;  there  is  no  such  word 
as  fail  in  my  composition.  1  came  out  of  the  war  right- 
side  up,  and,  God  blessing  me,"  he  said,  reverently,  "  I 
shall  2)rosper  now,"  and  so  he  passed  out  of  sight.  Surely 
there  was  good  material  here,  I  thought,  that  could  go  into 
the  army  at  twenty,  and  come  out  of  it  at  the  end  of  four 
years  without  having  smoked  a  cigar,  taken  a  quid  of 
tobacco,  or  a  dram  of  liquor.  It  is  the  boys,  who,  going 
out  into  the  world,  can  withstand  temptation,  as  he  has 
withstood  it,  in  the  trying  ordeal  of  army  experience,  who 
make  the  successful  men.  Judging  from  the  glimpse  I  had 
of  him,  I  should  say,  that  what  would  be  temptation  to 
many  boys  and  young  men,  was  no  temptation  to  him. 
When  I  offered  him  a  cigar,  he  told  of  his  record  in  such  a 
way  as  to  plainly  indicate  that  his  principles  were  fixed  in 
these  resj)ects,  and  he  wanted  me  to  understand  this  to  be 
so  at  the  outset  of  our  acquaintance,  so  that  never  in  the 
future,  if  we  were  to  be  thrown  together,  would  I  be  called 
upon  to  extend  to  him  a  similar  invitation. 

It  was  more  than  a  week  before  I  could  get  Lieut.  Blair 
out  of  my  mind.     As  for  Mrs.  Harding,  the  children,  and 


236  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

Adjutant  Johnson,  they  could  never  stop  talking  about  the 
great  enthusiasm  of  this  yourig  man,  with  only  three  hun- 
dred and  fifty  dollars  in  money,  and  a  party  of  freedmen 
waiting  down  on  the  sugar-coast  for  him  to  find  them  a 
home — he  expecting  to  thrive  through  them,  and  they 
through  him.  But  the  cares  of  our  plantation  in  time 
drove  the  episode  out  of  my  thoughts.  It  was  all  revived, 
however,  during  my  Yicksburg  trip  for  labor,  for  whom 
should  I  find  at  the  hotel  but  Lieut.  Blair  ?  He  was  over- 
joyed at  meeting  me. 

He  said  :  "  I  went  a  considerable  way  up  the  river,  and 
there  got  a  freed  man  to  ferry  me  across  in  a  skiff,  and  came 
down  the  river  again,  finally  returning  here,  and  so  making 
the  journey  on  foot." 

I  noticed  him  closely  as  he  was  telling  me  this,  to  see  if 
I  could  not  discover  that  his  ardor  had  cooled  ;  but  no,  there 
was  not  the  slightest  abatement.  As  if  divining  my  look, 
he  exclaimed  :  "  'Never  fear  ;  I  shall  succeed.  I  am  now 
negotiating  with  several  planters  here,  who  want  me  to 
come  to  them  with  my  labor,  and  who  offer  me  a  fine 
chance.  But  I  would  so  much  like  to  get  into  your  neigh- 
borhood. AV^hat  I  am  afraid  of  is,  not  knowing  the  plant- 
ers or  being  able  to  have  them  vouched  for"  I  may  make  a 
bad  selection.     Will  you  not  advise  me  on  this  subject?" 

Among  the  army  of  planters  there  in  search  of  labor,  was 
a  representative  from  General  Hampson's  Hambleton  plan- 
tation, in  the  person  of  the  owner  of  the  house  we  were 
living  in.  It  seems  that  General  Hampson's  wealth  was, 
like  that  of  most  people  here,  fictitious  ;  that  while  he 
held  the  title  to  Hebron  and  Hambleton,  as  well  as  one  or 
two  other  places,  none  of  them  were  paid  for  in  full ;  that 
the  Hebron  plantation  was  largely,  involved,  but  he  had 
cleared  our  title  to  it,  by  the  use  of  part  of  our  notes,which 
his  creditors  took  in  lieu  of  his,  netting  him  a  handsome 
profit  in  the  way  of  discount ;  that  he  had  satisfied  the 
creditors  against  Hambleton  by  agreeing  to  divide  it  equally, 


LIEUTENANT    BLAIR,    U.    S.    A.  237 

setting  off  to  tliom  one  half.  Our  village  landlord  repre- 
sented the  estate  to  Avliioh  this  was  to  go,  and  came  to  pro- 
cure labor  for  it.  The  actual  division  of  Hambleton  had 
not  yet  taken  place,  so  that  General  Hampson  was  yet  in 
immediate  command,  with  an  old-time  overseer  under  him. 

Barber,  the  Hambleton  representative,  was  having  no 
luck  at  Yicksburg  in  securing  labor,  and  was  likely  to  have 
to  return  without  any  recruits.  He  was  not  able  to  get 
down  among  the  negroes  like  many  of  the  other  planters. 
His  manner  was  rather  that  of  the  bank  president,  who 
knows  he  has  customers  for  every  dollar  he  has  to  loan, 
and  that  they  will  come  to  him  and  ask  him  for  it,  and  so 
never  solicits,  when  it  should  have  been  that  of  the  book- 
peddler  or  the  life-insurance  agent,  who  knows  that  he  must 
w^ork,  talk,  and  solicit  a  great  deal  to  secure  customers. 

It  occurred  to  me  that  Lieutenant  Blair  might  make  a 
satisfactory  arrangement  with  the  Hambleton  owners,  and  I 
suggested  as  much  to  him. 

"  Just  what  I  should  like  to  do  !  "  he  cried,  "  then  I  can 
be  in  your  splendid  country  and  near  you.  Will  you  not 
introduce  me  to  Mr.  Barber  ?  " 

"Certainly,"  I  replied,  and  that  afternoon  I  brought  them 
together.  Barber  thought  there  was  no  sort  of  question 
but  that  General  Hampson  would  be  only  too  delighted  to 
make  an  arrangement  with  Lieutenant  Blair  similar  to  the 
one  be  proposed  to  make  with  us,  which  Blair,  at  my  re- 
quest, repeated  to  Barber,  and  the  latter  importuned  him  to 
proceed  with  him  by  the  first  steamboat  to  Hambleton,  and 
close  the  bargain,  so  that  he  might  hurry  away  and  fetch 
his  labor — all  of  which  was  in  due  time  consummated;  and 
so  Lieutenant  Blair  was  located  on  the  Hambleton  planta- 
tion in  a  room  in  the  overseer's  cabin,  and  though  the  roof 
which  covered  him,  and  the  walls  that  shut  him  in,  were 
the  rudest,  he  was  yet  very  happy,  in  the  thought  that  after 
his  long  wandering,  he  was  at  last  apparently  so  satisfac- 
torily situated.      Ho  furnished  bis  own  little  room  com- 


238  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

fortably  from  his  slender  purse,  and  was  allowed  to  pur- 
chase such  articles  of  food  not  furnished  for  the  overseer's 
table  as  his  appetite  demanded.  The  terms  of  his  contract 
did  not  require  this  outlay  by  him,  as  by  it  he  was  to  be 
bedded  and  boarded  by  the  plantation,  but  there  was  some- 
thing said  about  the  outlay  being  refunded  to  him  in  the 
fall ;  and  so,  not  at  all  particular  or  exacting,  or  expecting 
any  sharj^  dealing,  he  did  not  complain. 

"  I  want  a  comfortable  bed,"  he  said,  "  and  wholesome 
food,  and  I  don't  mind  a  little  extra  outlay  to  procure 
them,  as  these  are  my  only  luxuries."  It  seemed  like  a  rare 
chance  for  our  new-found  friend,  and  I  felt  glad  over  the 
thought  that  I  had  been  able  to  serve  him  in  a  small  way, 
and  he  was  very  grateful  to  me.  The  overseer  was  an  ex- 
perienced planter,  and  under  him  Blair  could  learn  all  the 
details  of  the  cotton-field,  and  thus  become  a  practical 
planter,  which  was  precisely  what  he  was  seeking  for.  His 
zeal  to  assist  the  overseer,  was  only  equal  to  his  enthusi- 
asm for  his  new  calling,  so  that  he  was  up  early  and  late, 
and  always  in  the  field  where  the  negroes  were  at  work. 


CHAPTEE   XLVI. 

OUR   HOME   IN   THE    OVERSEER's    CABIN. 

After  saying  good-bye  to  our  party  on  the  steamer 
"Dan  Able,"  I  mounted  my  horse,  and,  in  company  with 
Billy  and  the  conveyances  which  took  our  families  to  the 
wharf-boat,  hurried  away  from  the  landing.  I  knew  it  to 
be  unsafe  to  be  out  at  such  an  unseasonable  hour,  but 
the  delay  of  the  boat  made  it  unavoidable.  The  lights 
were  streaming  from  the  open  doors  of  the  saloons,  which 


OUR    nOME    IN    THE    OVERSEER'S    CABIN.  239 

were  all  well  filled  witb  parties  drinking  and  playing  cards, 
no  doubt  for  the  most  part  "  the  mischievous  boys,"  yet 
none  of  them  appeared  to  be  on  the  "  rampage,"  perhaps 
because  it  was  so  early  in  the  evening,  and  so  we  went 
through  the  village  unmolested.  We  took  the  levee  road, 
passing  by  our  dark  and  deserted  home,  which  looked 
dreary  enough  with  the  gloom  of  night  about  it. 

Wishing  to  be  alone  with  my  sad  thoughts,  I  put  ray 
horse  into  a  slow  gallop,  left  the  rest  of  our  party  in  the 
rear,  and  so  caught  up  with  the  steamboat,  which  was  car- 
rying my  treasures  up  the  river  so  fast,  and  kept  up  with 
her,  until  I  turned  in  at  our  plantation  gate;  or,  rather,  to 
be  perfectly  accurate,  I  followed  her  half  a  mile  further  up 
the  river,  with  the  desperate  feeling  that  I  could  not  let 
-her  pass  out  of  my  sight,  or  be  left  behind  here,  in  the 
midst  of  this  contagion  and  unfriendly  sentiment.  But 
my  panting  horse  warned  me  that  I  had  gone  far  enough, 
and  so,  with  a  heavy  heart,  I  turned  back.  There,  out  on 
the  water,  was  the  object  of  my  present  passion,  moving 
steadily  and  with  majesty  up  the  river,  looking,  with  its 
myriad  of  lights,  just  like  a  city  in  the  distance  at  night. 

I  suffered  the  reins  to  drop  on  the  neck  of  my  tired  an- 
imal, resolved  to  keep  my  dreary  watch  there  until  the 
boat  swept  around  the  bend,  and  so  passed  out  of  sight. 
Just  then  the  coal-heavers  threw  wide  open  the  furnace- 
doors,  to  replenish  them.  At  first  the  throats  thus  ex- 
posed looked  like  molten  masses  of  fire,  shining  from  the 
front  of  the  boat,  and  out  upon  the  water,  but  the  next  in- 
stant, as  the  fireman  stirred  up  the  furnaces,  great  billow- 
ing flames  streamed  out,  and  I  involuntarily  exclaimed, 
"  The  boat  is  on  fire  !"  But,  of  course,  it  was  nothing  of 
the  kind — only  the  blaze  from  the  furnaces.  Then  sparks 
and  smoke  rolled  out  from  the  chimneys  in  two  great  coils, 
the  sparks  veiled  in  the  smoke  looking  like  stars  overcast 
by  fast-flying  clouds.  The  volume  of  sparks  went  twink- 
ling in  a  long,  bright  band  far  behind  the  boat,  hanging 


240  A   YEAR    OF   WRECK. 

low  over  it  and  the  water,  because  of  the  raiu -saturated 
atmosphere  of  the  region. 

After  the  boat  had  passed  a  mile  away,  I  sat  there  brood- 
ing on  my  horse  and  remembered  the  story  Mrs.  Harding 
had  once  told  me,  of  a  cousin  in  the  West,  who  was  so 
homesick  for  his  parents,  then  visiting  in  Vermont,  that  he 
got  out  on  the  fence  one  evening,  and  called  for  them  at 
the  top  of  his  voice.  I  could  now  sympathize  with  the 
boy  as  heartil}"  as  I  had  often  laughed  at  him,  for  here  was 
I,  a  strong  man,  and  I  could  hardly  resist  the  temptation 
to  call  to  the  boat  to  come  back  and  take  me  away  from 
this  desolate  country  forever — take  me  back  to  my  pill- 
shop,  where  no  Dobson  should  tempt  me  again  ;  to  my  pill- 
shop,  where,  instead  of  sherry,  I  would  have  aqua-fortis, 
as  a  welcome  for  all  bearers  of  Dobson  estimates.  ^ 

Two  miles  off,  the  puffing  of  the  steamer  was  no  longer 
lieard  ;  there  were  no  sparks  flying  from  the  chimneys,  and 
instead  of  the  steady  movement  of  a  distinct  steamboat, 
full  of  life,  all  that  could  be  seen  were  the  lights,  away  off 
on  the  water — carried  along  with  an  uncertain  motion. 
One  instant  they  would  appear  stationary-,  the  next  they 
would  dart  ahead.  Finally,  that  which,  with  this  stop-and- 
go  motion,  no  longer  seemed  a  steamboat,  but  a  specter, 
was  gradually  jerked  out  of  sight,  around  the  bend  of  the 
river  above. 

I  went  slowly  back  until  I  was  brought  up  at  the  overseer's 
cabin,  when  our  prospective  home  there  became,  for  me,  a 
reality.  The  overseer's  cabin  was  a  building  eighteen  feet 
by  thirty-two,  single  story,  with  an  eight  foot  gallery  run- 
ning down  one  side,  a  double  chimney  in  the  center  of  the 
building,  and  a  board  partition  extending  on  either  side 
of  it,  thus  making  two  rooms,  of  equal  size,  about  six- 
teen feet  square.  One  room  served  as  our  plantation 
store,  office,  etc.,  the  other  was  prepared  for  Dobson  and 
myself  It  was  at  once  our  sleeping,  sitting,  and  dining- 
room ;  in  short,  it  was  all  the  room  we  had.      Old  Clara 


OUR    HOME   IN    THE   OVERSEER's   CABIN.  241 

and  tho  beautiful  Mary,  who  was  to  servo  as  our  cook  until 
Jane's  recovery,  bad  fitted  up  tbe  room  for  our  reception. 
It  is  astonishing  bow  many  things  can  be  stowed  in  a  sin- 
gle room : — there  were  two  double  beds  in  opposite  corners ; 
a  wardrobe  in  another  corner ;  a  writing-desk  in  the  re- 
maining corner  ;  our  trunks,  two  of  them;  a  bureau;  a  wash- 
stand  ;  a  table  in  the  center,  for  all  purjooses,  which,  fortun- 
ately for  our  space,  was  an  extension  one,  capable  of  seat- 
ing for  a  meal  fourteen  persons,  or  contracted  for  but  four  ; 
then  there  were  two  common  chairs,  and  two  rocking- 
chairs — these  and  a  lounge  made  up  the  principal  items  of 
furniture,  etc.,  on  the  floor  of  the  room. 

The  dogs  howled  fearfully  the  first  night.  I  got  up 
several  times  and  went  to  the  door  to  try  and  quiet  them, 
and  I  felt  the  discomforts  of  the  jam  in  wdiich  I  had  taken 
up  ray  abode,  through  the  rappings  I  got  on  my  shins  while 
floundering  about  in  the  dark — which  showed  black  and 
blue  marks  the  next  day.  The  shoulder  of  the  chimney, 
on  which  the  throat  rested,  served  as  a  mantle-piece,  where 
was  placed  our  little  French  clock,  with  two  coal-oil  lamps. 
The  outfit  for  house-keeping  was  quite  complete.  I  have 
already  enumerated  a  portion  of  the  articles ;  those  which 
I  have  not  named,  could  have  been  seen  hanging  around 
on  the  walls,  which  were  profusely  covered  with  them — 
coats,  sauce-pans,  hats,  tin-cups,  saddle  and  bridle,  and  a 
medley  of  incongruous  articles,  too  numerous  to  mention. 
We  did,  however,  have  a  second  room,  in  the  shape  of  a 
little  space  boarded  in  on  one  corner  of  the  gallery,  where 
our  cooking  stove  was  mounted.  This  "  shed  "  served  the 
purpose  of  china-closet,  pantry,  store-room,  and  kitchen. 
Manifestly,  our  outfit  was  too  extensive  for  our  dwelling. 
We  could  have  done  quite  well,  and  had  plenty  of  room, 
with  a  simple  camp  outfit,  or  with  such  an  outfit  as  in  the 
primitive  days  early  settlers  in  the  West  began  life  with  ; 
but  here  we  had  too  much  mahogany,  too  many  append- 
11 


242  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

ages  of  fashion.  The  dressing  of  our  room  was  not  at  all 
in  keeping  with  the  room  itself,  though  if  we  had  been 
called  upon  to  part  with  any  single  article,  we  could  not 
have  made  a  choice,  so  necessary  did  they  all  seem. 

In  the  romantic  stage  of  our  plantation  experience,  I 
would,  doubtless,  have  called  it  snug  and  cosy,  but  the 
romance  was  now  worn  off,  and  I  felt  desperately  blue  at 
being  left  thus  alone,  so  I  had  something  to  say  to  Billy 
about  the  whole  thing  being  a  perfect  clutter,  and  how  this 
was  a  pig-pen  existence.  I  stumbled  about  among  the  fur- 
niture at  my  first  morning  toilet,  and  when  some  article 
got  in  my  way,  as  happened  constantly",  I  kicked  out 
at  it  viciously,  as  though  it  had  feeling.  If  I  had  allowed 
myself,  I  could  easily  have  felt  a  fearful  disgust — indeed, 
I  felt  the  disgust  already,  but  endeavored  not  to  acknowl- 
edge it. 

Only  across  the  yard,  not  three  rods  away,  was  the  cabin 
used  as  a  hospital,  where  there  were  four  small-pox  cases, 
and  I  was  their  only  doctor.  It  takes  more  philosophy 
than  I  possessed,  in  the  mood  I  was  then  in,  to  consider 
the  atmosj)here  of  small-pox  cheerful.  But  I  made  a  pow- 
erful effort  to  look  on  the  bright  side  of  the  situation,  or 
to  look  where  I  thought  it  should  be  (the  fact  is,  there  was 
no  bright  side),  and  thus  I  regained  some  sort  of  equilib- 
rium. It  would  never  do  to  break  down,  now  that  I  was 
left  alone  with  the  pestilence,  and  this  weight  of  duty  upon 
me. 

Billy  came  in  to  say  that  "  two  of  the  small-pox  patients 
were  out  of  their  head  last  night,  and  got  away  from  the 
hospital,  and  the  nurse  chased  them  for  over  an  hour, 
finally  catching  them  at  the  gin-house.  They  are  now  back 
in  the  hospital  with  a  raging  fever  on  them,  and  want  at- 
tention badly."  It  was  not  half  a  minute's  walk  to  the  hos- 
pital, and  so,  while  my  breakfast  was  preparing,  I  went 
over  to  see  what  could  be  done  for  the  runaway  patients. 
They    were    full-blooded    negroes,  and    their    faces  were 


OUR    HOME   IN   THE   OVERSEER'S   CABIN.  243 

blotched  and  swollen  to  such  an  extent,  that  each  made  me 
think  of  a  dead-ripe  bhackberiy,  with  here  and  there  the 
skin  broken,  showing  the  seed,  and  a  little  bead  of  red 
juice.  There  they  lay,  burning  with  fever,  and  crazy  as 
loons.  There  did  not  appear  to  be  a  chance  for  them,  but 
I  gave  our  sufferers  the  benefit  of  my  best  druggist  know- 
ledge, and  left  them,  wnth  a  severe  reprimand  to  the  nurse 
for  letting  them  get  aw^ay. 

When  I  returned  from  m}^  visit  to  the  hospital,  I  found 
Clara  building  a  fire  in  our  fire-place,  and  Mary  standing 
over  her  with  a  troubled  expression  on  her  beautiful  face, 
which  was  disfigured  by  several  spots  of  smut.  There  were 
vessels  of  half-cooked  food  standing  about  on  the  hearth, 
and  my  glance  in  the  kitchen  as  I  came  along,  so  far  as  1 
could  see  through  the  cloud  of  smoke,  showed  that  there 
was  not  a  lid  on  the  stove,  and  that  the  smoke  and  blaze 
were  pouring  out  from  every  hole. 

"  What  in  the  world  is  the  matter  !  "  I  exclaimed. 

Clara  looked  up  from  blowing  the  fire,  with  her  wet  eyes, 
and  replied,  "  Mr.  Harding,  dat  iron  trick  in  dar  is  no  sort 
o'  'count  for  a  nigger's  cooking  in  dis  country;  it  may  do 
up  Norf — but  it  '11  nebber  do  down  heer.  Mary  an'  me  is 
bin  tryin'  to  git  de  grub  ready  for  ye  for  de  las'  half  hour, 
an'  it  has  pintedly  don'  smoked  our  eyes  out." 

"Have  you  never  cooked  on  a  stove?" 

Both  replied,  "  We 's  nebber  seed  dat  kind  o'  trick 
afore." 

Both  Mary's  beautiful  hands,  and  Clara's  horny  ones, 
showed  numerous  blisters.  Seeing  us  look  at  their  hands 
Clara  said,  holding  up  hers  : 

"  We  done  got  dese  blisters  tryin'  to  stop  up  de  pesky 
holes  in  dat  trick.  Cookin'  on  de  fire-place  's  easy  nuff, 
any  chile  kin  larn  dat ;  de  fire-place  jes  speaks  for  itself,  it 
alius  stands  wide  open,"  she  continued,  eyeing  it  with  evi- 
dent admiration,  "  and  says, 'jes  prepaar  fire  in   me,  and 


244  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

put  on  de  pots  an'  skillets  Avid  de  truck  in  um,  tm'  I  '11  do 
de  res.' "  Looking  toward  the  kitchen  from  which  the 
smoke  was  streaming,  and  rubbing  her  eyes  as  if  in  recol- 
lection of  the  dose  they  had  just  received,  she  said,  with 
marked  disgust,  "  dat  iron  fixin'  out  dar  '11  nebber  do  for 
de  likes  o'  us  niggers,  we  's  too  done  sot  in  our  ways  pint- 
edly." 

Mary  said,  looking  at  her  blistered  hands  with  her  red 
e^^es,  on  the  lashes  of  which  shone  moisture  from  their  re- 
cent weeping,  "1  mout  learn  in  time,  sir,  ef  some  one  'ud 
show  me,  but  I'd  rether  cook  out  in  the  yard,  ef  you  have 
no  objections,  until  1  do  learn."  Her  fresh,  clean  dress 
and  neatly  ruffled  bib-apron  were  all  smutted  up,  as  was 
Clara's  gown,  and  they  both  showed  distinct  marks  of  bav- 
ins: had  a  tussle  "  wid  dat  iron  trick,"  as  Clara  called  the 
stove. 

'•It  never  rains  but  it  pours,"  so  here  was  an  extra  duty 
before  me,  and  one  not  at  all  congenial  or  in  my  line— that 
of  teaching  the  cook  how  to  use  the  stove.  The  first  dis- 
covery made,  when  the  smoke  cleared  away  enough  to 
let  us  into  the  kitchen,  was  that  the  lids  of  the  stove  were 
not  unpacked  ;  Mary  built  the  fire  in  it  with  the  lids  wide 
open,  and  tried  to  stop  them  up  by  piling  sticks  of  wood 
over  them;  then,  without  knowing  that  each  kettle  had  its 
appropriate  hole,  she  got  the  large  kettles  on  the  small 
holes,  and  vice  versa.  In  her  distress,  she  had  called  in 
Clara  to  help  her  out,  but  Clara  was  no  wiser  than  she,  so 
they  gave  the  stove  up  and  moved  into  our  bed-room. 

It  was  a  wonder  they  did  not  burn  the  cabin  down  in 
their  morning's  bungling.  I  gave  them  permission  to  go 
on  and  finish  the  breakfast  in  the  fire-i^lace,  and  so  for  the 
first  meal  our  single  room  performed  the  additional  office 
of  kitchen  ;  but,  like  every  thing  else,  it  had  its  capacity, 
and  as  there  was  not  space  enough  left  after  the  storing  of 
the  furniture  for  two  cooks   and  myself,  at  one  time,  I 


LISS   AND   SAM.  245 

went  into  the  store  while  the  meal  was  being  prepared, 
after  which  Clara  vacated  and  left  rae  room  to  return  and 
eat  it. 


CHAPTER  XLYIII. 

LISS   AND    SAM. 

One  morning,  after  breakfast,  I  was  sitting  at  my  desk, 
writing  up  my  books,  and  smoking  a  cigar,  when  I  heard 
a  knock  at  the  store  door.     I  called  out,  "  Come  in." 

The  door  slowly  opened,  and  the  face  of  a  negro  man 
wearing  the  saddest  expression  imaginable,  and  with  his 
woolly  head  wrapped  with  a  fiery-striped  bandana  hand- 
kerchief, peered  in. 

"Did  yer  say,  come  in  ?"  he  drawled  out.  "  Yes,"  I  an- 
swered, "  come  in,  and  shut  the  door  after  you."  Slowly 
my  order  was  obeyed — then  my  caller  dropped  a  faded  and 
torn  army  cap  on  the  floor  at  his  side,  caught  at  what 
would  have  been  his  forelock  of  wool,  if  the  handkerchief 
had  not  hid  it,  pulled  his  head  slightly  forward,  and  at  the 
same  instant  scraped  back  with  his  right  brogan,  and 
drawled  out  deliberately  : 

"  I  wish  ye  good  mornin',  sah." 

I  recognized  him  as  one  of  our  Yicksburg  negroes. 
"  What  is  your  name  ?  " 

"Sam." 

"Are  you  sick,  or  what 's  the  matter  ?  You  look  as  if 
you  had  n't  a  friend  in  the  world." 

"  I 's  not  what  yer  mout  say  so  much  sick  wid  my  body 
as  I  am  torn  up  in  my  mind.  I 's  pow'fully  riled  dar.  Yer 
see,  I  tuck  up  wid  Liss,  when  we  corned  from  Yicksburg. 
Liss  an'  me  got  'long  right  pertly  till  de  udder  night,  when 


246  A  YEAR  OF  WRECK. 

all  of  a  sudden  she  seemed  sot  agin  me.  I  come  to  see  yer 
dis  mornin',  to  see  ef  yer  hadn't  some  truck  I  could  give  her, 
so  's  to  sot  her  back  in  her  lub  to  me  agin,  or  cf  yer  had  n't 
dat,  ef  yer  would'nt  jes  force  her  back  to  do  de  fa'r  thing 
by  me,"  an'  stop  her  runnin'  through  de  quarters  nights." 

"  Where  is  Liss  ?  "  I  asked. 

"  She  's  out  in  de  fiel'  'twork." 

"  "Well,  you  bring  her  up  here  this  evening  at  seven 
o'clock,  and  we  '11  see  what  can  be  done.  I  do  n't  happen  to 
have  any  '  truck '  about  me  that  you  could  give  her  to 
bring  her  back,  but  we  '11  see  what  a  little  talk  will  do." 

At  seven  in  the  evening  Sam  and  Liss  came  around, 
Sam  repeating  his  operations  of  the  morning  in  the  knock- 
ing and  bowing  line  ;  but  Liss  stood  up  without  a  look  or 
word  of  recognition,  which  led  me  to  believe  that  she  was 
not  a  willing  party  to  the  interview  now  on  hand. 

Liss  was  a  wild-looking  wench  ;  she  had  a  dare-devil 
flash  of  the  eye,  and  every  mark  of  being  perfectly  un- 
tamed ;  like  a  child's,  her  under  lip  stuck  out  a  half  an  inch, 
and  there  seemed  any  quantity  of  pout  in  her.  She  looked 
at  me  viciously,  out  of  the  corners  of  her  eyes,  just  as  an 
angry  horse  will  look  when  about  to  send  his  heels  against 
the  dash-board.  I  could  not  think  of  any  thing  but  a 
high-mettled  animal  when  I  saw  her.  She  was  well  fed, 
her  face  was  glossy,  and  her  whole  person  was  glowing 
with  health  and  high  spirits.  I  almost  expected  her  to 
kick  out  and  squeal  like  a  vicious  mare. 

Sam  was  as  solemn  as  an  owl.  '•  Liss,"  said  he,  "  dis  is 
Mr.  Harding.  I  aint  arter  takin'  any  unfa'r  advantage  of 
ye,  so  I  wants  yer  to  tell  yer  own  side  of  de  story,  an'  I  '11 
tell  mine,  an'  we'll  let  him  'cide  twixt  us." 

I  looked  at  Liss,  but  the  only  answer  on  her  part  was  a 
sullen  shake  of  the  skirt  of  her  frock,  and  a  quarter  of  an 
inch  more  pout  on  her  lip. 

"  Go  ahead,  Liss,"  Sam  said. 

"  I 's  got  nuffin  to  say,"  was  all  Sam  could  get  out  of  her. 


LISS    AND    SAM.  247 

I  urged  her  to  tell  lier  story,  but  to  no  purpose;  so  I 
said:  ''Sam,  tell  us  your  side  of  the  case."  And  Sam 
squared  around  delibcratel}"  for  the  work  before  him.  He 
held  out  his  left  hand  before  him,  shaping  it  like  a  cup,  as 
if  the  whole  story  was  in  its  hollow ;  then  ho  hooked  the 
first  finger  of  his  right  hand,  and  put  it  in  this  hollow,  as 
if  to  pull  out  the  facts  as  they  occurred  to  him.  Thus  pre- 
pared, with  his  head  on  one  side,  and  all  the  manner  of  a 
person  bent  on  being  scrupulously  exact  as  to  fixcts,  he 
commenced : 

"  Dis  is  Friday,  yisterday  was  Fursday,  an'  de  day  afore 
was  Tschuesday  ; — yes,  dat 's  right,"  he  said,  hesitatingly, 
and  as  if  in  a  little  doubt  as  to  whether  the  fore-finger  of 
his  right  hand  had  hooked  out  the  right  day  from  the  hol- 
low of  his  left  hand  ;  but,  finally,  deciding  that  it  had  done 
so,  he  continued,  "  Yes,  it  war  Tschuesday  night — Lisa 
an'  me  war  sittin'  on  de  steps  ob  our  gallery,  when,  jis  as  a 
husband  'II  do  sometimes,  I  put  my  arm  around  her  waist, 
an'  she  tole  me  to  take  it  away,  and  so  I  tuck  it  away ;  but 
after  awhile  I  puts  it  back  agin,  an'  she  tole  me  to  take  it 
away  agin,  so  I  tucked  it  away  agin.  By  'n  by  I  puts 
it  back  agin,  an'  she  tole  me  to  take  it  away  agin.  This 
made  me  stubborn  like,  and  I  luff  it  dar ;  she  tole  me  ef  I 
did  n't  take  it  away,  she'd  knock  it  away,  an'  I  luff  it  dar 
to  see  ef  she  'uld — an',  shore  nuff,  she  knocked  it  away,  an' 
dat  night  she  wouldn't  get  into  bed,  but  slept  on  de  floor, 
an'  ebber  since  she's  kep  away  from  me,  an's  been  sleepin' 
out  o'  nights  anywhar." 

Sam  dropped  his  right-hand  finger,  and  let  his  left  hand 
fall  at  his  side,  thus  indicating  that  he  had  nothing  more 
to  say. 

I  looked  at  Liss  and  asked  :  "  Is  all  this  true  ?  " 
She  grunted  out  some  monosyllable,  which  might  have 
been  a  "  yes,"  or  it  might  have  been  an  exclamation  of 
surprise  at  Sam's  story,  and  then  shoved  out  her  lij^s  an- 
other quarter  of  an  inch,  and  stood  there  with  her  knuck- 


248  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

les  resting  on  her  hips,  her  feet  sprawled  out  far  enough  to 
let  a  spring  lamb  pass  between  them,  without  rubbing, 
stomach  and  breast  thrown  well  to  the  front,  head  back, 
nostrils  and  eyes  shooting  and  breathing  defiance,  her  ears 
close  to  her  head  just  like  a  stubborn  mule's.  I  waited  a 
moment  for  Liss  to  continue,  but  she  had  done.  It  was  n't 
Liss's  words  which  told  the  thoughts  within  her;  her  per- 
son and  manner  told  them  distinctly  enough  ; — there  was  no 
tamed  colt  here,  and  manifestly  the  slow-going,  deliberate 
Sam  had  no  business  to  be  hitched  up  along  side  of  her, 
any  more  than  a  poky  dray-horse  by  the  side  of  a  brisk, 
jumping,  balking,  fiery  mustang  pony. 

I  considered  a  moment  what  advice  I  had  best  give; 
knowing  pretty  well  that  the  untamed  wench  at  my  side 
would  not  heed  me  in  the  least,  but  feeling  that  I  must 
make  an  effort  for  Sam's  sake,  as  my  sympathy  rested  with 
him,  although  I  could  not  help  admiring  his  "tuck-up" 
woman,  who  was  now  kicking  in  the  traces  and  looking 
defiance.     Meanwhile,  I  said  : 

'*'  Sam,  if  you  have  done  anj'  thing  to  Liss,  which  you 
ought  not,  are  you  sorry  for  it  and  willing  to  ask  her  for- 
giveness?" 

"Yes,  sah." 

"  Will  yoLi  do  so  now  ?  " 

"Yes,  sah." 

"Well,  go  ahead." 

"  Liss,  ef  I's  done  de  wrong  part  by  ye,  I  axes  yer  par- 
don, an'  ef  ye  leave  dat  low-down  nigger  ye's  runnin'  arter, 
an'  come  back  to  me,  I'll  'low  ye  to  take  de  whole  ob  Sat- 
urday to  do  yer  washin'  in." 

Sam  said  this  with  more  life  than  I  had  supposed  there 
was  in  him,  and  then  he  looked  anxiously  and  inquiringly 
at  Liss,  to  see  whether  she  was  softened. 

"  Liss,"  I  said,  "'  if  you  have  done  any  thing  you  ought 
not  to  have  done,  are  you  sorry  for  it,  and  are  j^ou  willing 
to  ask  Sam's  forgiveness  now  ?  " 


LISS   AND   SAM.  249 

"No!"  she  screamed  out,  as  if  this  was  too  much  for 
her  pent-up  feelings,  "  Sam's  a  lazy,  low-down,  triflin'  nig- 
ger, an'  I  'il  scratch  his  eyes  plum  out,  if  he  comes  pesterin* 
me  any  more.  I  don't  'long  to  him  ;  we  was  nebbcr  mar- 
ried oul  ob  de  book,  and  den  for  him  to  be  talkin'  so  'bout 
de  'spectable  nigger  I's  gwyne  to  tuck  up  wid  !  " 

Liss's  last  sentence  explained  the  whole  thing ;  she  was 
tired  of  Sam,  and  was  going  to  a  new  man. 

Turning  to  Sam,  I  said:  "I  can  do  nothing  for  you; 
Liss  is  not  willing  to  go  back  to  you,  and  I  would  n't  have 
any  thing  more  to  do  with  her.  You  have  forgiven  her, 
but  she  wont  forgive  you,  and  she  may  be  sorry  for  it, 
some  day.     That's  all,"  I  said,  ''you  may  go  now." 

The  next  day  Liss  was  taken  down  with  small-pox.  It 
was  melancholy  to  see  Sam  frequently  standing  at  the  door 
of  the  hospital  between  working  hours,  and  talking  to  sick 
Liss.  He  had  never  had  the  small-pox,  and  could  not  sum- 
mon up  enough  courage  to  go  in  where  she  was  ;  but  there 
he  would  stand,  on  the  outside,  talking  with  her,  often  tak- 
ing her  over  such  luxuries  as  sardines,  cove  oysters,  crack- 
ers, etc.,  which  he  would  hand  to  the  nurse  at  the  door.  Dur- 
ing all  this  time  the  new  lover,  for  whom  Liss  had  discarded 
Sam,  never  came  near  her,  and  when  she  got  up  from  her 
attack,  her  face  was  so  disfigured  that  he  would  not  look 
at  her,  and  by  that  time  Sam  had  taken  up  with  another 
woman,  and  so  the  much-coveted  Liss  was  left  alone. 
11* 


250  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 


CHAPTEK  XLYIII. 

JIMMY   WATSON    AND    THE    SMALL-POX. 

As  SOON  as  we  closed  our  bargain  with  Colonel  Gray,  we 
had  his  outfit  moved  down  to  Hebron,  which  relieved  the 
hands  on  watch  at  the  plantation  above,  among  whom,  as 
we  have  said,  was  Jimmy  "Watson.  We  put  Jimmy  at  once 
in  charge  of  our  blacksmith-shop,  where  he  was  proving 
himself  as  serviceable  as  he  was  small  and  homely.  We 
soon  found  him  to  be  thoroughly  trusty,  prompt,  a  compe- 
tent workman,  and  in  no  sense  an  eye-servant.  Wherever 
he  was,  there  was  sunshine,  and  his  loud,  merry  laugh  was 
perfectly  contagious.  He  was  respected  by  all  the  laborers 
on  the  plantation,  and  his  influence  was  the  very  best.  Ho 
had  a  decided  disgust  for  the  short-comings  of  the  race  of 
which  his  fraction  of  negro  blood  made  him  as  much  part 
and  parcel  as  if  there  had  been  no  mixture  in  his  veins.  Many 
were  the  good,wholesome  lectures  he  would  earnestly  deliver 
when  he  thought  his  people  needed  them.  He  understood 
the  meaning  of  freedom  in  its  broadest  and  fullest  sense,  as 
applied  to  his  race,  and  he  prized  it  as  he  did  his  wife. 

He  was  accustomed  to  say  that  "  half  the  niggers  do  n't 
'zarve  their  freedom,  the  way  they  're  gwyne  on.  I  do  n't 
sec  what"  such-and-such  a  negro,  naming  him,  "was  ever 
born  for.  He's  a  disgrace  to  his  race."  He  kept  his 
blacksmith-shop  in  splendid  shape,  never  allowed  his  work 
to  drive  him,  and  there  was  no  haggling  about  the  number 
of  hours  he  was  to  labor — if  necessary  for  him  to  work  un- 
til midnight,  or  all  day  Saturday,  or  at  any  time  out  of 
hours,  either  in  the  shop  or  out  of  it,  I  had  but  to  say  the 
word,  and  he  could  turn  off  abundance  of  work.  He  was 
not  one  of  that  somewhat  numerous  class  of  workmen  who 


JIMMY    WATSON    AND   THE    SMALL-POX.  251 

are  always  commencing  their  jobs — he  never  had  any  thing 
to  say  about  what  ho  was  "  going  to  do."  When  a  job  was 
called  for  it  was  pretty  certain  to  be  ready;  and  he  only 
sj^oke  of  that  which  he  had  already  accomplished.  He 
w^as  practical  and  had  a  graft  of  executive  ability,  which  it 
was  delightful  to  discover  in  the  midst  of  so  much  which 
was  its  very  opposite.  In  him  was  material  for  some  high 
executive  officer; — ho  could  carry  out  a  programme 
promptly  and  thoroughly,  and  his  ideas  about  the  manage- 
ment of  a  plantation,  and  the  way  to  farm,  seemed  to  me 
good.  We  had  yet  to  test  him  on  these  points,  but  he  said 
he  was  as  good  an  engineer  as  he  was  blacksmith,  and 
could  do  far  better  farming  than  any  we  were  having  done. 

As  may  be  readily  supposed,  Jimmy  gave  us  great  pleas- 
ure. Here  was  certainly  one  instance  where  the  white 
graft  on  a  negro  stock  had  produced  a  splendid  cross. 
Honesty,  capacity,  industry',  education  and  humor  were  all 
shut  uj)  in  this  little  fellow.  One  might  say  that  every 
thing  about  him  was  white  but  his  skin,  and  then  add  that 
it  was  more  than  half  white,  too. 

Jimmy  had  one  fault,  however,  personal  to  himself — his 
inordinate  extravagance.  He  was  the  best  customer  the 
Hebron  store  had,  and  kept  his  wages  traded  out  as  close 
as  he  kept  the  mixture  of  hair  and  wool  on  his  head  crop- 
ped. In  the  case  of  his  hair,  you  could  seethe  skin  on  any 
part  of  his  head  ;  and  in  the  case  of  his  pocket,  there  never 
was  a  ten  cent  piece  in  it.  Not  a  night  passed  that  he  did 
not  carry  home  some  article  of  luxurj^  for  his  Mary.  But 
kings  and  princes  have  lavished  fortunes  on  far  less  beau- 
tiful women  than  Jimmy  was  now  lavishing  his  daily  earn- 
ings on,  and  after  all,  his  spend-thrift  course  may  not  have 
been  so  much  a  characteristic  as  it  was  a  desire  to  devote 
every  penny  of  his  earnings  to  this  Southern  beauty  of 
his,  but  for  whom  he  might  have  been  the  veriest  niggard. 

Jimmy  gained  great  eclat  on  the  plantation  by  the  mere 
fact  of  having  such  a  beautiful  woman  for  a  wife,  though 


252  A   YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

with  his  bright,  intelligent  eyes,  merry  laugh,  and  striking 
characteristics,  he  would  soon  have  won  his  way  as  a 
leader,  even  without  her  at  his  side.  Another  trait  in 
Jimmy's  character  was  his  assurance.  We  wanted  a  chim- 
ney rebuilt,  for  one  of  the  cabins,  that  had  fallen  down. 
He  said  that  he  could  do  it,  and  he  did  build  it,  but  at  the 
cost  of  eight  barrels  of  lime,  when,  as  we  afterwards  dis- 
covered, one  would  have  been  sufficient.  This,  however, 
added  only  thirty-five  dollars  to  the  Dobson  estimate,  and 
it  was  looked  upon  as  a  matter  of  small  consequence.  We 
used  to  laugh  at  it  as  a  good  joke. 

Jimmy  was  ray  right-hand  man  every  Saturday  evening 
when  I  distributed  rations — now  measuring  molasses,  now 
cutting  up  rounds  of  pork,  diving  into  the  meat-tub,  deal- 
ing out  handsful  of  salt,  cracking  jokes,  and  keeping  every 
body  in  good  humor  with  bis  merry  laughter.  When  he 
was  not  blacksmithing,  or  caressing  Mary,  he  was  pretty 
sure  to  be  hunting  for  deer,  and  many  were  the  deer  ho 
brought  in,  as  w^ell  as  other  game.  1  had  bought  a  Spencer 
rifle,  thinking  to  do  some  hunting,  but  Jimmy  was  not  long 
in  trading  me  out  of  it,  for  what  he  said  was  a  silver  watch, 
but  which  turned  out  to  be  galvanized,  and  did  not  under- 
stand the  first  lesson  of  time-keeping. 

The  next  victim  to  small-pox  after  Liss  was  Jimmy.  He 
was  ailing  for  several  days  before  I  found  out  what  was  the 
matter  with  him.  His  hammer,  which  had  been  wont  to 
ring  out  on  the  anvil  early  and  late,  and  with  all  the  vigor 
there  was  in  his  wonderfully  vigorous  little  body,  grew  fee- 
ble and  less  frequent  in  its  stroke,  until  finally,  when  I  went 
across  to  his  shop  one  morning,  there  were  a  few  incipient 
pimples  on  his  forehead ;  and  when  I  told  him  what  ailed 
bim,  he  let  his  hammer  fall  at  the  side  of  his  anvil,  and  his 
pale  mulatto  complexion,  which  was  already  suffused  with 
the  fever  then  running  through  his  veins,  grew  paler.  The 
expression  on  his  face  was  that  frequently  seen  in  the  faces  of 
soldiers  when  about  to  make  a  dangerous  charge,  or  in  those 


JIMMY    WATSON   AND   THE   SMALL-POX.  253 

of  persons  about  to  undergo  a  critical  surgical  operation. 
There  was  the  evident  nerving  of  himself  for  the  task  be- 
fore him,  when  he  fully  realized  its  nature.  The  pallor 
was  almost  instantly  followed  by  the  decision  to  endure  the 
stroke  courageously. 

"I  don't  mind  it,"  he  finally  said,  deliberately,  as  if  he 
was  still  revolving  the  painful  discovery  in  his  thoughts, 
"  for  me,  but  ef  Mary  should  git  it,  it  would  kill  me.  Can't 
3'ou  give  her  something,  Mr.  Harding,  that  will  keep  it 
from  her?" 

"Has  she  been  vaccinated?"  I  asked. 

"Yes;  I  done  had  her  vaccinated  in  Yicksburg,  and  it 
tuck  on  both  arms,  an'  the  doctor  done  kep  the  scab  for 
his  use,  case  he  said  Mary  was  sich  a  healthy  subject." 

"  Then  there  is  n't  much  danger  for  her,  but  you  must 
go  into  the  hospital  immediately,  and  Mary  will  have  to 
keep  away  from  you  all  the  time  while  you  are  sick." 

"  I  '11  go  anywhar,  or  do  anything,  ef  only  Mary  kin  be 
spared  ;  it  would  kill  me  plum  dead  to  see  her  smooth  skin 
all  pock-marked." 

And  then  he  looked  at  me  very  earnestly,  as  if  his  last 
sentence  had  called  up  some  unpleasant  thought,  which  it 
had,  for  he  said,  with  a  troubled  expression  : 

"  But,  Mr.  Harding,  I  'm  to  be  pock-marked.  I  'm  none 
o'  the  han'somest  now — what  ef  I  live  to  git  out  of  the  hos- 
pital, with  my  face  all  blotches,  as  it  will  be,  like  Sambo 
Jinkins's,  who  's  jist  come  out,  and  Mary  should  be  sot 
airiu  me,  and  should  n't  love  me  ?" 

It  was  melancholy  to  sec  the  painful  expression  on  his 
face  at  this  thought.  He  seemed  to  grow  five  years  older 
all  in  a  moment,  and  his  knees  knocked  against  each  other, 
while  his  whole  frame  shook  as  if  with  ague. 

"I  would  rather  die  with  the  small-j^ox  den  to  hev  this 
to  happen." 

I  told  him  to  console  himself  with  the  thought  of  what 
he  had  just  said  ;  that   he  was   none   of  the   handsomest 


254  A    YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

now,  and  that  if  Mary  had  been  after  a  pretty  man,  she 
would  never  have  j^icked  him  up.  ''A  few  blotches  on  your 
face,"  I  said,  "  will  make  no  difference  with  Mary's  love." 
He  was  such  a  fountain  of  mirth,  my  suggestion  that  he 
could  not  become  much  uglier  than  he  was  now,  called 
forth  his  merry  laugh,  though  not  very  loud  or  hearty. 

Jimmy  then  gave  some  directions  to  his  assistant,  who  was 
a  very  good  blacksmith  himself,  and  would  now  have  to 
take  charge  of  the  shop,  about  the  work  on  hand,  and 
about  keeping  every  thing  in  order,  and  locking  up  care- 
fully at  night,  when,  after  taking  a  lingering  look  all  around 
the  shop,  with  the  tell-tale  thought  on  his  features,  that  per- 
haps he  was  never  to  see  the  place  again,  he  said  : 

"  1  '11  go,  now,  to  the  hospital  and  get  into  bed,  for  I  feel 
a  pow'ful  misery  in  my  bones.  On  my  way  I  '11  say  good- 
bye to  Mary."  So,  with  his  hands  clasj^ed  over  his  fevered 
foi'ehead,  he  crossed  into  the  yard  of  the  quarters,  walked 
up  to  his  cabin  door,  and  called  "Mary!"  She  came  out 
on  the  gallery  at  once,  when  he  cried  out  to  her,  his  face 
expressing  alarm : 

"  Do  n't  come  a-nigh  me,  Mary ;  you  must  n't  tech  me, 
for  I'se  got  the  small-pox,  and  I  'mgwyne  over  to  the  hos- 
pital to  be  nussed.  Take  good  care  of  yourself,  and  keep 
away  from  me,  and  don't  forget  how  Jimmy  used  to  look, 
becaze  when  you  see  me  agin  I  '11  be  ugly." 

Mary  wrung  her  hands,  and  Avept  bitterly,  crying  out, 
*'  It  do  n't  make  no  difference  how  ugly  you  is ;  I  'longs 
to  you,  and  will  never  'long  to  nobody  else;"  then,  with 
faces  indicative  of  true  agony,  they  separated,  bidding 
each  other  good-bye,  and  looking  back  at  each  other  until 
he  disappeared  in  the  hospital.  There  was  no  thought  of 
self  with  him,  except  so  far  as  his  loathsome  disease  might 
influence  or  change  the  feelings  of  Mary  toward  him  ;  and 
when  she  assured  him,  as  she  had  just  done,  that  she  would 
be  true  to  him,  he  was  at  once  relieved.     I  followed  him 


JIMMY   WATSON    AND   THE   SMALL-POX.  255 

into  the  hospital,  and  found  him  undressing  with  the  ut- 
most coolness  and  courage. 

Jimmy  had  a  most  violent  attack,  and  was  delirious  at 
times.  One  night,  in  his  half  frenzy,  he  got  up,  and  had 
gone  as  far  as  the  door,  with  the  wild  intention  of  rushing 
out  and  running  away;  but  he  had  just  reason  enough 
left,  with  his  good  common  sense,  to  think,  "Now,  if  I  do 
this  it  will  kill  me ;"  and  so  he  dragged  himself,  as  it  were, 
forcibly,  back  into  bed  and  covered  himself  up,  and  asked 
the  nurse,  who  was  awakened  by  the  noise,  to  strap  him 
down,  for  fear  he  would  have  another  paroxysm  and  not 
be  able  to  control  himself.  He  was  as  tractable  as  a  babe, 
and  never  failed  to  take  his  medicine,  and  have  my  least 
order  carried  out.  In  this  way  he  stood  guard  over  him- 
self, and  would  not  allow  the  nurse  to  neglect  him  in  the 
slightest  degree. 

"  May  be  ef  I  take  good  keer  of  myself  I  wont  be  much 
marked,  and  then  wont  Mary  be  pleased  !"  At  this  thought, 
in  his  enfeebled  condition,  he  would  give  vent  to  the  faint- 
est thread  of  a  laugh.  He  would  not  allow  a  breath  of 
fresh  air  to  strike  him,  and  so,  by  his  great  prudence,  he 
pulled  through. 

Mary  was  constantly  cooking  for  him  such  delicacies  as 
she  could  secure,  and  sending  them  to  him.  She  never 
asked  to  visit  him,  nor  did  she  seem  anxious  about  him,  as 
I  expected  she  would.  The  fact  is,  nature  had  been  so  lav- 
ish in  her  physical  charms,  that  it  had  played  the  common 
freak,  and  neglected  those  of  the  mind.  She  was  rather  of 
the  sluggish  or  sleepy  disposition — in  this  respect  showing 
strongly  the  negro  cross  in  her.  In  order  to  be  interested 
she  had  to  see  the  object ;  she  could  not  hold  its  image  in 
her  mind.  While  Jimmy  was  at  her  cabin  door,  and  she 
was  bidding  him  good-bye,  she  showed  considerable  feel- 
ing; but  when  he  was  shut  in  by  the  hospital  walls,  she 
did  not  seem  concerned  about  him.  But  whether  this  was 
a  result  of  heartlessness  or  childishness,  or  deception,  or 


256  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

something  of  each,  when  Jimmy,  at  last  a  convalescent, 
put  his  head  out  of  the  door,  then  tottered  forth  upon  the 
gallery,  and  Mary  saw  him,  there  was  all  the  animation  of 
their  separation  renewed. 

"  Why,  dere  's  Jimmy,"  she  exclaimed,  and  then  her  face 
was  suffused  with  pleasure;  "1  kin  hardly  wait  for  the 
time  to  come  for  him  to  cross  over."  When  he  finally 
came,  a  few  days  later,  with  his  gait  unsteady  from  weak- 
ness, toward  her,  and  looked  anxiously  into  her  face,  to  see 
whether  she  was  shocked  at  the  sight  of  his  scarred  and 
disfigured  features,  Mary  said  to  him,  "Jimmy,  you 's  jcs 
the  same  to  me  's  you  was  afore."  Jimmy's  eyes  lit  up 
with  joy.  It  was  a  touching  sight.  They  fell  into  each 
others  arms,  and  tears  of  ha2)piness  dropped  from  their 
eyes. 

Jimmy  felt  it  to  be  a  critical  moment  for  him ;  he  hesi- 
tated a  day  or  two,  before  he  could  get  courage  enough  to 
go  across.  He  got  an  old  piece  of  a  looking-glass  in  some 
way,  and  when  I  made  my  visits  to  the  hospital,  I  would 
catch  him  eying  himself  in  it,  as  if  trying  to  make  up  his 
mind  how  much  of  a  fright  he  was  ;  then,  again,  he  would 
creep  out  upon  the  gallery,  and  Mary  would  come  out  upon 
hers,  and  they  would  talk  to  each  other,  his  faint  voice  be- 
ing hardly  strong  enough  to  carry  itself  across  to  Mary's 
gallery. 

"  I  want  to  get  Mary  sort  o'  used  to  me,"  he  said,  "  afore 
I  go  over,  so  's  not  to  shock  her  so  bad  when  she  sees  me 
clost." 

But,  when  the  meeting  came,  Mary  did  not  appear  in  the 
least  shocked,  for  there  she  was,  in  all  her  loveliness,  in 
Jimmy's  arms,  clinging  to  the  unsightly  little  fellow  as  the 
ivy  clings  to  the  scorched  and  riven  tree,  rubbing  her  hand 
over  his  rough  face,  and  looking  into  his  bright  eyes, 
which  were  the  only  feature  unchanged — they  were  more 
brilliant  that  ever — and  showing  every  mark  of  wifely 
affection. 


JIMMY    WATSON    AND    THE   SMALL-POX.  257 

Jimmy's  hammer  soon  began  to  strike  again  feebly,  and 
it  was  some  time  before  it  gained  its  wonted  vigor. 

Next,  after  Jimmy,  the  small-pox  attacked  the  white 
man  Adjutant  Johnson  had  brought  down  as  engineer. 
lie  had  not  been  very  select  in  the  company  he  kept  at 
night,  and  so  fell  a  victim.  I  had  a  room  prepared  for 
him  in  the  gin-house,  put  a  competent  nurse  in  charge 
of  him,  and  gave  him  the  best  care  I  could;  but  he  was 
a  loose-jointed,  indolent  man,  without  any  power  of  re- 
sistance in  his  composition,  so  there  was  no  struggle  for 
life  on  his  part,  and  without  appearing  to  be  very  sick,  he 
shortly  died. 

The  inmates  of  our  small-pox  hospital  averaged  about 
five  during  the  siege  of  the  disease,  which  had  its  run 
through  the  plantation,  attacking  some  mildly,  and  others 
with  great  virulence,  the  deaths  being  eight,  including 
two  who  escaped  from  the  nurse,  as  already  related,  and 
who  died  the  second  day  following. 

As  often  as  a  death  occurred,  all  hands  insisted  on  stop- 
ping work  until  the  corpse  was  buried.  Mrs.  Harding's 
cook,  Jane,  recovered,  but  both  her  children  died.  As  was 
IH'eviously  arranged,  when  Jane  recovered  she  took  her 
place  as  our  cook.  She  was  now  childless,  and  seemed  to 
be  restless  about  some  thing,  was  very  inefficient,  and  fin- 
ally I  had  to  dismiss  her.  The  old  overseer,  whose  mistress 
she  had  been,  was  in  the  neighborhood,  having  just  re- 
turned from  Texas.  The  "  grape-vine  telegraph,"  as  it  was 
called,  informed  Jane  of  the  fact,  and  she  wanted  to  get 
back  to  him,  which  was  the  cause  of  her  unrest.  As  soon 
as  I  dismissed  her,  she  went  back  to  him,  ostensibly  as 
cook. 

I  should  gladly  have  put  Clara  into  her  place,  but  she 
said,  ''I's  done  burnt  myself  out  over  de  fire,  an'  cookin' 
makes  me  dizzy  like.  I  'd  rether  work  in  de  fiel'."  And 
80,  in  my  distress,  Jimmy  let  Mary  come  back  to  me  as  my 


!i58  A   YEAR    OF   WRECK. 

cook,  until  I  could  get  some  one  else.     As  he  was  so  careful 
of  her,  he  did  not  wish  to  have  her  work  out  permanently. 


CHAPTER  XLIX. 


A    CHAPTER    OF    HORRORS. 


Hebron  was  rapidly  assuming  the  atmosphere  of  a  hos- 
pital. Shortly  after  the  departure  of  our  families,  the  rains 
ceased,  the  skies  cleared,  and  the  sun  shone  out  with  torrid 
fervor.  The  waters  in  the  ditches  and  bayous — choked  up 
as  they  were,  and  no  longer  fed — soon  became  sour  stag- 
nant pools,  with  a  coating  of  green  scum,  the  vapors  from 
w^hich  filled  the  air  with  that  something  poj^ularly  called 
"  malaria."  The  river  dropped  within  its  banks,  and  left 
the  slough  in  front  of  the  levee — made  by  the  barrow-pits 
from  which  the  dirt  was  taken  to  build  the  levee — a  long, 
narrow,  slimy  pond.  It  was  overshadowed  by  knotted, 
gnarly  willows,  hackberries,  water-oaks,  and  straight  cot- 
ton-woods, which  in  turn  were  festooned  from  root  to 
branch  with  enormous  vine-growths,  such  as  the  trumpet- 
creeper,  wild-grape,  American  ivy,  and  poison  oak,  mak- 
ing in  all  a  tangled,  sun-proof  mass.  Clumps  of  palmetto 
and  swamp  grasses,  with  blades  broad  as  a  Mexican  dag- 
ger, shot  up  out  of  the  water,  rendering  the  slough  swamp- 
like in  the  extreme.  When  it  was  fed  by  the  rains  and  the 
back-water  from  the  Mississippi,  ducks  had  been  fond  of 
the  place,  but  now  they  flew  away  from  the  sour,  filthy 
pool,  and  in  their  stead  came  swarms  of  moccasin  snakes, 
which  delighted  to  coil  themselves  up  on  the  limbs  of  bushes 
growing  out  of  the  water,  in  bunches  sometimes  as  large 
as  a  peck  basket,  from  their  perches  hissing  defiance  at 


A    CHAPTER   OP   HORRORS.  259 

•» 

passing  objects,  whether  of  human  or  brute  kind,  or  wrig- 
gling along  through  the  green  scum  on  the  surface  of  the 
water.  There  were  also  to  be  seen,  these  hot,  sunny  days, 
schools  of  turtles  on  projecting  logs  and  limbs.  Occasion- 
ally an  alligator  was  seen  thrusting  his  nose  through  the 
green  up  against  a  log,  or  the  more  venturesome  smaller 
ones  on  the  top  of  logs,  with  belated  alligator-gars,  as  long 
as  a  man,  buffiilo-fish  and  cat  as  large  as  a  ten-year-old  boy, 
which  came  into  the  slough  in  the  back-water  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi to  spawn,  and  did  not  get  away  when  the  back- 
water ran  out — now  either  frightened  at  their  imprison- 
ment, or  gasping  for  the  want  of  air  in  this  dead-water, 
flopping  up  out  of  it,  parting  the  scum  and  making  great 
splashes  as  if  bowlders  were  here  and  there  thrown  into  the 
slough.  Little  lizards  of  all  hues  were  to  be  seen  running 
up  and  down  the  sides  of  the  trees,  or  peering  through  the 
vine-growth  on  bushes  and  logs.  And  there  was  a  profu- 
sion of  insect  life  swarming  under  this  density  of  shade. 
Then,  there  was  the  weed-growth  rotting  in  the  ditches  ; 
the  recently  turned-up  earth  exposing  decayed  vegetable 
matter— the  opening  up  of  fields  with  the  green  mold  of 
years  upon  them:  all  filling  the  air  with  most  unpleasant 
smells,  which  were  passing  through  the  lungs,  and  gorging 
the  liver  with  bile.  When  the  vapor  began  to  rise  at  the 
dusk  of  evening,  the  odor  was  snakey. 

Hitherto  I  had  not  understood  why  this  country  should 
be  called  "  a  swamp,"  but  it  was  clear  enough  now.  It  did 
not  take  long,  breathing  this  atmosphere,  before  chills  and 
fever  showed  themselves.  Here  was  another  malady  added 
to  the  small-pox.  This  was  the  season  of  year  when,  in 
slave-times,  planters  left  the  country  with  their  families, 
entrusting  the  management  of  their  plantations  to  the 
overseers. 

Wo  might  have  escaped  with  a  comparatively  light  in- 
tliction  if  we  could  have  controlled  the  situation  as  the 
overseers  had  been  able  to  do ;  but,  try  as  we  might,  the 


260  A   YEAR   OF   WRE^K, 

habits  of  our  laborers  were  simply  fearful.  The  single 
men  ostensibly  sle^t  in  the  barrack  which  we  had  built  for 
our  white  laborers;  but  the  fact  was,  they  slept  around 
anywhere,  now  in  this  cabin,  now  in  that — wherever 
drowsiness  overtook  them  they  dropped  asleep.  Frequently 
it  was  on  the  gallery,  where  the  heavy  dews  would  satu- 
rate their  clothing,  and  all  night  long  they  would  breathe 
in  the  sickening  odors  with  which  the  air  Avas  filled. 

Then  they  insisted  on  spearing  the  gar,  buffalo,  and  cat- 
fish in  the  slough,  with  their  horrid,  snaky  odor,  and  then 
eating  them.  They  ate  muskrats,  minks,  coons,  opossums 
— in  short,  every  thing  they  could  kill,  except  snakes. 
This  was  done  by  stealth.  We  would  find  their  skins  in 
the  neighborhood  of  the  quarters.  It  seemed  a  second 
nature  in  the  negroes  to  eat  these  outlandish  things,  and  it 
was  impossible  to  j^revent  them  entirely,  although  wo 
might  and  did  restrain  them. 

When  we  caught  a  negro  in  the  dusk  of  evening,  or  just 
at  break  of  day,  bringing  up  an  alligator-gar  from  the 
slough,  hooked  by  the  gills  upon  his  spear-pole,  and  thrown 
over  his  shoulder,  with  the  tail  dragging  on  the  ground,  he 
would  declare  he  did  not  intend  to  eat  it,  but  wanted  the 
hide  to  tan  for  shoe-leather ;  if  it  were  a  buffalo  or  cat-fish, 
he  would  make  an  excuse  that  he  wanted  to  get  the  fat 
out  of  it,  or  that  there  was  a  bone  in  it  he  wanted  to  tie 
around  his  neck,  which  some  one  had  told  him  would  drive 
away  sickness.  In  the  same  way  we  would  catch  them 
bringing  in  some  one  of  the  filthy  animals  above  men- 
tioned, which  they  always  had  some  ready  use  for,  at  their 
tongue's  end,  other  than  eating  it ;  but  eat  it  they  would, 
proof  of  which  was,  that  persons  so  caught  were  generally 
taken  down  sick  a  day  or  two  afterwards. 

Peach  trees  had  sprung  up  all  over  the  plantation  during 
the  war.  They  were  loaded  with  fruit ;  and  as  fast  as  the 
peaches  showed  the  slightest  pink  the  negroes  would  pull 
them  and  gorge  themselves.     They  did  not  seem  to  have 


A    CHAPTER    OF    HORRORS.  261 

the  least  thought  of  waiting  for  them  to  get  ripe.  It  was 
not  a  question  as  to  who  were  tlie  guilty  ones — they  were 
all  guilty.  Then,  there  were  a  few  apple-trees  in  our  begin- 
ning of  an  orchard,  and  also  a  couple  of  pear-trees,  the  fruits 
of  which  they  picked  by  stealth  and  ate  when  they  were  as 
hard  as  bullets.  We  never  had  a  ripe  peach,  or  apple,  or 
pear  during  the  year,  and  yet  there  was,  all  told,  a  yield 
of  perhaps  a  thousand  bushels.  There  were  watermelon 
vines  scattered  through  the  cotton,  yet  not  a  melon  was 
allowed  to  ripen  or  get  much  over  half  its  groAvth.  Their 
green  seeds  and  rinds,  with  pieces  of  green  core,  were  to  be 
seen  every  day  at  the  heads  of  the  cotton  rows,  showing 
that  the  negroes  had  been  at  other  work  than  that  of  hoe- 
ing and  plowing  cotton. 

In  consequence  of  all  this,  every  day  the  percentage  of 
sickness  was  on  the  increase.  There  was  not  a  niijht  that 
I  was  not  up  with  one  or  more  cases  of  cholera-morbus. 
This  class  of  sickness  was  added  to  the  small-pox  and 
chills.  Whether  my  year  s  experience  would  make  me  a 
creditable  planter  remained  to  be  seen ;  but  there  was 
not  much  doubt  that  it  Avould  make  me  a  fair  practical 
physician  in  the  special  line  of  sickness  I  had  to  deal  with. 
The  item  of  "  medicine  and  medical  attendance  free," 
which  had  looked  so  harmless  in  our  contracts,  was  turning 
out  to  be  a  heavy  expense,  and  an  onerous  tax  upon  ray 
tired  time.  The  negroes  were  perfect  in  their  own  estima- 
tion. I  could  never  get  them  to  acknowledge  a  fault ;  and 
notwithstanding  there  was  the  evidence  of  their  guilt  right 
before  them,  they  would  declare  they  never  had  eaten  a 
green  peach  or  a  green  melon,  but  that  it  was  working  in 
the  hot  sun,  or  the  salt  pork,  or  sour  meal,  or  something 
else  than  the  thing  itself,  which  made  them  sick.  My  task 
seemed  to  be  a  hopeless  one  until  I  could  work  them  up  to 
an  acknowledgment  of  the  causes  which  made  them  sick, 
and  this  seemed,  as  a  general  rule,  an  impossibility.  Billy 
had  an  old  horn  which  he  brought  out  of  the  army,  and 


2G2  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

un  which  he  had  learned,  among  other  things,  to  blow  the 
sick  call — so,  every  morning,  he  would  get  out  on  the  gal- 
lery, and  sound  that  which  the  soldiers  used  to  interpret  as, 
"  Quinine  !  quinine  !  and  take  it  in  double  doses — and  take 
it  in  double  doses."  But  that  did  not  answer  here; — in 
my  daily  round  through  the  quarters,  I  would  frequently 
find  some  negro,  who  had  apparently  hid  himself  away, 
with  a  burning  fever  on  him,  and,  as  would  be  the  invari- 
able answer,  "  Wid  such  a  mis'rj^  in  my  bones." 

My  greatest  trouble  was  to  get  the  sick  properly  nursed. 
Perhaps  this  was  because  these  negroes  never  had  the  service 
to  perform  before,  since,  when  they  were  slaves,  their  mas- 
ters had  it  done  for  them.  Then,  too,  when  a  slave  died, 
there  was  no  funeral  ceremony;  now  the  funerals  were 
ponderous  aifairs,  the  whole  plantation  seeming  like  Sun- 
day, until  the  body  was  in  the  ground,  which  was  not  gen- 
erally until  after  two  days  had  passed. 

The  crude  idea  of  the  negroes  seemed  to  be  that  they 
could  pray  their  dead  into  heaven,  no  matter  what  their 
previous  life  had  been.  So,  when  a  patient  was  pro- 
nounced hopeless,  or  when  death  had  actually  occurred,  he 
was  immediately  taken  charge  of  by  the  aunties  and  un- 
cles who  were,  as  it  was  called,  " 'ligious."  In  the  death- 
room,  where  the  corpse  would  be  laid  out,  and,  before 
death,  while  the  rattle  was  in  the  throat,  rude  prayers  in- 
terspersed with  singing  and  exhortations  were  commenced, 
which  were  kept  uj)  and  increased,  as  their  feelings  were 
worked  up  to  fever-heat,  with  little  or  no  interruption  un- 
til the  time  for  burial  came,  when  the  party  would  form  in 
procession  behind  the  wagon,  bare-headed,  and,  singing, 
follow  the  dead  from  the  cabin  to  the  grave.  With  the 
manual  labor  attending  the  funeral,  such  as  making  the 
coffin,  digging  the  grave  and  preparing  the  wagon  to  carry 
the  corpse  to  the  grave,  the  religious  negroes  would  have 
nothing  to  do.  Their  task  was  the  saving  of  the  soul — the 
rest  we  had  to  hire  others  to  perform.     The    "  sinners," 


A   CUAPTER    OF    HORRORS.  2G3 

as  they  were  called,  generally  formed  in  the  rear  of  the 
"  'ninted,"  and  marched  to  the  grave-3-ard.  But  while  the 
funeral  ceremonies,  at  the  cabin,  were  performed,  they 
lounged,  slept,  hunted,  speared  fish,  visited  adjoining 
plantations,  and  caroused. 

Gradually  the  negroes  of  the  neighborhood — who,  at 
first,  brought  together  from  all  parts  of  the  country,  were 
strangers — became  acquainted  with  each  other.  As  a  con- 
sequence, these  funeral  occasions  sometimes  extended  to 
adjoining  plantations — that  is,  our  people  helped  to  bury 
the  dead  of  other  places,  and  vice  versa,  which  of  course 
increased  the  number  of  holidays,  and  made  the  hospital 
asi^ect  still  more  striking. 

These  frequent  rests  were  exceedingly  demoralizing.  Af- 
ter a  night's  ceremonies  over  some  dead  body  the  partici- 
pants were  illy  fitted  for  the  labor  of  the  ensuing  day. 
Scarcely  did  we  get  a  little  tone  to  our  help  when  either  a 
death  would  occur,  or  the  Saturday  holiday,  and  then 
there  must  be  the  struggle  to  tone  up  again.  There  were 
instances  where  a  death  would  take  place  Wednesday 
night,  the  religious  exercises  would  follow  on  Thursday  and 
Thursday  night,  and  the  funeral  on  Friday — thus  making 
two  days  of  rest.  Then  we  would  try  to  get  a  day's 
work  on  Saturday,  but  it  was  "in  de  contrac'" — no  work 
on  Saturday ;  and  so,  as  often  as  we  tried  it,  we  had  to 
give  it  up,  and  thus  it  was  that  four  solid  days  in  seven 
were  spent  outside  of  the  field. 

Some  of  the  deaths  might  have  been  avoided  with 
only  a  small  percentage  of  the  attention  in  nursing  which 
was  given  to  their  funerals  afterward.  I  strove  hard  to  work 
up  an  efficient  corps  of  nurses,  but  met  with  no  sort  of 
success,  our  heads  of  squads  proving  as  great  failures  as 
the  rank  and  file;  and  so,  from  mere  necessity,  I  turned 
one  side  of  our  store-room  into  a  hospital,  and  when  I 
found  a  critical  case  I  had  it  moved  there,  where,  adjoining 


264  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

our  own  sleeping-i*oom  as  it  was,  I  could  give  it  my  per- 
sonal attention. 

The  funerals  of  the  small-pox  victims  were  not  so  cere- 
moDious  as  those  of  the  negroes  who  died  of  other  diseases; 
there  was  no  takiug  charge  of  the  corpse  until  it  was 
i:)laced  in  the  coffin.  But  then  the  exercises  commenced 
with  a  vim,  and  were  all  the  more  boisterous  because  of 
the  shortness  of  time  in  which  to  expend  their  fervor  and 
pray  away  the  sins  of  the  dead.  And  a  small-pox  funeral 
always  meant  one  day  out  of  the  field. 


CHAPTER  L. 


BUZZARDS   AND   INSECTS,  ETC. 


There  was  a  tall,  dead  tree,  with  its  far-reacliing,  crooked 
limbs  still  intact,  in  the  midst  of  the  slough  in  front  of 
the  levee,  which  served  as  a  roosting-place  by  night  and  a 
perch  by  day  for  a  flock  of  turkey-buzzards.  So  fond  of 
any  thing  in  the  shape  of  death,  they  selected  this  dead 
tree  for  a  home  instead  of  a  living  one,  whose  leaves  would 
have  afforded  them  both  shade  and  shelter.  From  this 
perch  they  spied  their  food  in  the  slougii  below  them, 
and  in  the  country  round  about,  either  dropping  down 
upon  it,  or  flying  oft'  after  it,  whether  it  were  a  dead  snake, 
a  fish,  a  dog,  a  Texas  steer,  or  that  apparently  to  them  most 
delicate  of  all  dishes,  a  dead  mule.  Whatever  it  might  be, 
from  the  largest  animal  down  to  the  tiniest  bird,  or  reptile, 
would  be  picked  clean  within  twenty-four  hours  after  its 
death.  No  matter  in  what  out-of-the-way  place,  however 
hid  by  tangled  growth,  nothing  ever  escaped  them.  I 
frequently  found  them  in  the  depths  of  our  woods,  or  in 


BUZZARDS   AND   INSECTS,  ETC.  265 

the  midst  of  our  ciinc-brakc,  -while  I  rode  in  search  of  a 
stray  mule,  burrowing  in  the  side  of  a  dead  rabbit,  or  a 
squirrel,  or  a  deer,  or  pulling  away  at  a  snake.     Seeing 
them  on  their  roost  one  would  say,  "  What  lazy  birds  they 
are,"  for  there  they  would  sit  until  the  sun  was  well  up, 
each  spreading  out  its  wings  and  tail  to  dry,  looking  like 
a  stuffed  eagle  in  a  museum,  or  reminding  one  of  a  filthy 
tramp,  sitting  on  the  edge  of  a  stream,  waiting  for  the  sun 
to  dry  the  dew  off  his  rags  before  taking  up  his  march 
again.     And  yet  they  performed  their  work  with  a  fidelity 
which,  if  imitated  by  our  laborers,  would  have  given  our 
plantation  a  very  different  appearance.      Their  task  was 
also  executed  noiselessly.     They  only  flapped  their  wings 
when  alighting  or  leaving  their  perch  or  feast.     The  rest 
of  their  journey  was  made  by  sailing   through  the   air 
Avith  extended,  but  motionless  wings.     Never  a  sound  came 
from  their  ungainly  beaks,  nor  were  they  grudging  toward 
each  other,  but  would  work  together  over  the  common  prey 
with  the  utmost  harmony  and  good  feeling; — frequently 
one  party  of  buzzards,  finding  another  already  at  their 
meal,  with   all  the  space  occupied,  would  quietly  take  up 
their   perch   in   the   neighborhood,   waiting  for  the   first 
ones  to  gorge  themselves,  flutter  up  and  sail  away :  some- 
times coming  and  going  singly,  in  which  case,  as  fast  as 
a  vacant  space  would  be  made  at  the  feast  it  would  be 
occupied  by  a  waiting  bird.     Thus  there  was  never  any 
wrangling  over  the  meal,  and,  save  the  motion  of  the  wings 
of  those  coming  and  going,  all  was  quiet  as  the  grave. 

Nothing  ever  disturbed  their  feast  except  the  hungry 
dogs,  to  which  they  would  give  way.  While  we  knew  that 
these  scavengers  only  did  us  good,  it  was  yet  melancholy  to 
see  them  every-where,  now  sailing  along  low  down,  and 
now  but  a  speck  in  the  air  from  their  great  height,  or  else 
deliberately  at  their  work,  with  that  quiet  which  surrounds 

the  dead,  and  with  a  faithfulness  and  a  thorouc-hncss  un- 
12 


266  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

equaled.  Where  there  was  a  mortality  among  the  lower 
animals  great  enough  to  require  so  many  busy  beaks  and 
claws,  there  would,  of  necessity,  be  great  sickness  and 
mortality  among  human  kind.  I  often  wondered  whether 
these  feasters  on  the  dead  ever  died  themselves.  I  never 
saw  one  of  them  dead,  as  I  frequently  saw  other  birds ; 
nor  could  I  ever  discover  any  signs  of  nesting  or  of  young 
among  them.  They  all  had  the  slow  movements  of  age, 
seeming,  in  their  faded  black  garb,  with  wrinkled  heads 
and  necks,  superannuated,  if  such  a  thing  were  possible 
with  them.  The  buzzard  was  one  bird  the  negroes  never 
shot.  They  had  a  superstition  among  them  that  when 
buzzards  reached  a  given  age  they  turned  into  black  cats. 

What  a  country  we  found  this  for  insect  life  !  Seeming 
to  partake  of  the  wealth  of  soil  here,  which  doubled  and 
quadrupled  the  size  of  every  thing,  whether  a  weed,  a  blade 
of  grass,  a  stalk  of  cotton,  a  shrub  or  tree — all  varieties  of 
insects  grew  and  flourished.  Take  a  particular  species  of 
bug,  fly,  moth,  or  other  insect,  and  it  was  larger  than,  and 
there  were  a  hundred  of  them  here  to  every  one  of  those 
outside  of  this  swamp  region.  During  the  day  the  heat 
of  the  sun  drove  them  into  the  weeds  and  brambles  and 
swamps  for  shade,  but  when  night  came  on,  they  swarmed 
out  from  their  hiding-places,  and  filled  the  air  with  their 
singing,  buzzing,  hissing  and  screaming  sounds. 

A  lamp-light  in  our  bed-room  was  a  general  invitation 
for  every  thing  with  wings  or  legs  to  come  in,  and  come 
they  did  in  all  sizes  and  shapes,  striking  the  exposed  parts 
of  my  body,  getting  into  my  ears,  nose,  and  eyes,  crawling 
up  my  pantaloons — in  short,  searching  out  and  passing 
over  every  part  of  my  body.  First  and  foremost  in  num- 
bers, as  well  as  annoyance,  were  the  musquitoes — the  little 
striped-legged  fellows  by  day  and  the  large,  vicious  ones 
by  night.  There  was  no  such  a  thing  as  wearing  slippers, 
because  these  pests  would  blister  my  ankles — so  I  had  to 
swelter  in  high   shoes.      Frequently  they   came   in  such 


BUZZARDS   AND   INSECTS,  ETC.  267 

swarms  as  to  drive  me  under  the  bar  before  bed-time,  and 
about  the  only  comfort  I  experienced  this  year  was  when  I 
was  thus  shut  away  from  them,  hearing  them  sing,  and  by 
the  aid  of  the  lamp,  seeing  them  beat  themselves  against 
the  bar,  as  if  enraged  at  being  thus  defeated  in  their  attack 
on  me.  At  dusk  they  were  worse  than  at  any  other  time. 
Then  a  smoke  was  absolutely  necessar3^  So  I  had  an  iron 
bucket  made,  which  every  evening  at  that  hour  was  filled 
with  chips,  fired,  and  placed  so  that  the  breeze  would  blow 
the  smoke  on  our  gallery,  and  into  our  store  and  bed-room. 

Then  there  were  millers  of  every  conceivable  shape,  size, 
and  hue,  and  in  such  numbers  as  almost  to  put  our  light 
out  at  night,  fluttering  over  and  into  it,  scorching  their 
wings,  but  still  keeping  up  the  attack  until  the  flame  of 
the  lamp  would  transform  them  into  mere  bugs,  when  they 
would  go  hopping  about,  like  wounded  soldiers,  on  our 
table.  I  could  have  furnished  a  pint  of  millers,  more  or 
less  singed,  almost  any  night.  One  evening  the  "  zip  bugs  " 
got  so  bad  we  had  to  shut  down  the  window  and  close  the 
door.  Then  we  turned  in  and  captured  those  in  the  room, 
and  they  filled  a  half-gallon  measure. 

There  was  a  little  fly  about  the  size  of  a  flax  seed,  which 
was  particularly  annoying,  because  it  w^ould  flit  against  our 
lamp  and  leave  little  specks  of  fuz  on  it,  until  it  would  have 
a  coating  all  over,  so  that  after  having  a  very  bright  light 
we  would  have  a  very  dull  one.  This  insect  I  could  have 
furnished  by  the  pint.  J3eing  so  small  the  mortality  in 
numbers  was  great.  They  banked  themselves  up,  as  it  were, 
around  the  base  of  our  lamp,  dead,  after  whipp)ing  the  coat- 
ing off  their  wings  and  bodies  against  its  side. 

It  was  astonishing  how  destructive  an  agent  a  single 
coal-oil  lamp  was  to  this  insect  life.  I  never  knew  our 
lamp  to  beguile  a  mosquito,  however.  What  they  came 
for  was  our  blood,  and  they  knew  well  enough  that  the 
journey  to  seek  it  did  not  lie  through  that  little  light  on 
our  table.     But,  lift  our  bar  a  moment,  and  how  they  would 


268  A   TEAR   OF   WRECK. 

swarm  under  it ! — and  if  there  chanced  to  come  in  it  a  hole 
the  size  of  a  pea,  it  seemed  as  if  all  the  musquitoes  in  the 
neighborhood  would  know  of  it  in  a  very  short  time. 

Then  there  were  beetles,  crickets,  katydids,  tree-toads ; 
and  every  pond  and  slough  was  filled  with  frogs,  from  the 
over-grown  bull-frog,  with  his  hoarse  "blonk,"  to  the  pip- 
ing baby  ones — all  of  which  aided  in  making  the  nights 
hideous  indeed. 

There  were  swarming  lizards,  swarming  moccasin  snakes ; 
droves  of  turtles,  alligators,  turkey-buzzards,  owls  ;  swarms 
of  flies  by  day,  and  musquitoes,  millers,  and  innumer- 
able bugs  and  insects  by  night.  Add  to  these  small-pox, 
chills  and  fever,  cholcra-morbus  ;  days  that  were  red-hot ; 
a  region  so  foul  and  filthy  with  its  stagnant  pools  and  de- 
caying matter  that  all  the  disinfectants  in  the  country, 
poured  into  it  or  scattered  over  it,  would  not  have  purified 
it;  with  a  diet  which  made  a  man  who  cared  anything 
about  what  he  ate,  or  was  at  all  fond  of  wholesome  food, 
go  hungry;  not  a  drop  of  milk  to  drink,  not  a  pound  of 
ice — nothing  but  ham,  cofi'ee,  saleratus  buscuit,  hoe-cake, 
and  bean  soud  ! 


CHAPTEK  LI. 


CONDITION    OF   OUR   CROP. 


How  fared  our  cotton  during  this  season  of  miasma? 
Very  much  as  fares  a  weed-ridden  garden  which  Its  owner 
undertakes  to  redeem,  and  begins  by  giving  it  the  shallow- 
est of  plowing,  plants  it  with  indiiferent  or  defective  seed, 
and  then  lets  the  weeds  get  a  good  start  of  the  plants, 
which  come  out  of  their  shallow  beds  feeble,  because  of 
the  feeble  germ.     Our  plowing  had  been  shallow,  our  seed 


CONDITION   OF   OUR   CROP.  269 

defective  ;  aud  we  had  been  forced — having  untaught  labor 
and  being  ourselves  untaught — to  let  the  weeds  and  grass 
get  a  start  of  the  young  and  feeble  cotton-plant,  doubly 
feeble  now  because  of  its  germ,  and  the  hard  bed  it  had  to 
rest  in. 

Then,  when  the  rains  came,  the  malarial  season  set  in 
with  ever}'-  thing  favorable  to  the  j^romotion  of  disease. 

When  an  army  is  smitten  with  sickness,  its  commander 
closes  the  campaign,  goes  into  quarters,  and  addresses  him- 
self to  the  task  of  getting  his  soldiers  well — his  camp  for 
the  time  being  becomes  a  hospital.  AYhen  a  community  of 
people  finds  a  pestilence  in  its  midst,  business  is  suspended 
and  every  body  either  flees  away,  or  assists  to  nurse  the 
sick,  or  waits  with  bated  breath  until  the  epidemic  is  over. 
We  were  having  just  such  experiences,  but  our  task  was  in 
no  shape  to  be  postponed.  We  had  to  flounder  along  with 
it,  but  it  was  sorry  progress  we  were  making. 

The  motto  of  the  cotton-plant  is,  "  Give  me  room  accord- 
ing to  my  strength."  That  was  just  what  we  were  not 
doing.  Drive  a  board  down  on  one  side  of  a  cotton-plant, 
and  that  side  will  grow  up  without  a  limb  on  it.  Put  it 
down  on  the  other  side,  and  there  will  be  no  limbs  there; 
put  boards  around  the  four  sides,  and  there  will  not  be  a 
limb  on  the  entire  stalk — nothing  but  the  shoot  from  the 
top,  which  will  continue  to  grow  during  the  season. 

It  is  the  limbs  from  the  ground  up  which  bear  the  cot- 
ton, and  it  is  absolutely  necessary  that  there  should  be  a 
space  left  around  each  stalk,  so  that  the  limbs  can  com- 
mence to  shoot  out  from  the  ground  as  the  stalk  grows  up. 
Our  cotton  was  in  the  grass,  and  it  was  this  grass  and  the 
weeds  which  were,  so  to  speak,  planked  around  each  cot- 
ton stalk.  These,  therefore,  were  forced  to  grow  up  like 
so  many  willow  withes.  Until  the  weeds  were  taken  away 
by  the  hoe  and  plow  our  cotton-plants  could  not  even  be- 
gin their  preparation  for  fruit,  by  beginning  to  put  forth 
limbs.     As  long  as  the  plants  were  in  their  straight-jackets, 


270  A   TEAR   OF   WRECK. 

they  would  run  to  height ;  whatever  height  they  reached 
before  being  released  from  this  confinement  of  weeds,  there 
would  be  no  limbs,  and  so  no  fruit  from  the  ground  up- 
ward. A  stalk  growing  to  a  height  of  two  feet,  and  un- 
able to  send  out  limbs  as  it  grows,  by  reason  of  being  sur- 
rounded by  weeds  and  grass,  will  be  entirely  fruitless,  as 
well  as  limbless,  for  that  distance.  As  I  have  elsewhere  ex- 
plained, it  is  these  ground-limbs  which  bear  the  first  and 
best  crop,  because  this  is  the  first  to  blossom,  it  ripens  in 
the  shade,  and  the  boll  does  not  open  prematurely.  It  is 
to  cotton  what  blackberries  that  ripen  on  the  under  side  of 
the  bush  in  the  shade  are  to  the  ordinary  blackberries  which 
ripen  on  top  of  the  bush  in  the  sun.  The  first  blossoms, 
having  the  whole  season  in  which  to  mature,  produce  cot- 
ton of  a  longer  staple,  and  therefore  more  valuable.  Hence 
it  is  that  this  first  picking,  this  bottom  crop,  being  the  first 
to  open,  always  commands  the  best  price. 

By  reason  of  our  cotton  being  in  grass,  this  bottom 
crop  was  lost  to  us.  The  order  of  yield  being,  first,  the 
bottom  crop;  second,  the  middle  ;  and  third,  the  top  croj:), 
and  our  bottom  crop  being  lost,  it  followed  that  a  third  of 
our  crop  was  gone.  It  was  the  best  third,  too,  because  of 
the  length  of  staple.  The  bottom  limbs  being  the  first  to 
begin  growing,  and  growing  and  fruiting  during  the  whole 
season,  they  would  be  longer  and  so  have  more  fruit  on 
them  than  the  later  comers,  the  middle  limbs,  and  far  more 
than  the  still  later  comers,  the  top  limbs,  which,  by  rea- 
son of  such  lateness  and  the  contingency  of  the  worm,  were 
of  uncertain  yield. 

These  points  being  considered,  perhaps  we  should  be 
more  nearly  correct  to  say  that  the  loss  of  our  bottom  crop 
meant  the  loss  of  half  our  crop.  It  certainly  meant  this 
unless  the  season  were  very  favorable — that  is,  unless  the 
frost  were  late  in  coming  and  there  should  be  no  worm. 

Then  it  was  a  shock  to  the  plant  not  to  be  allowed  to 
put  out  its  lower  limbs.  ♦  It  was  violating  the   natural 


CONDITION    OF   OUR   CROP.  271 

course  of  its  growth.  When  we  got  the  weeds  and  grass 
away,  there  would  be  no  lower  limbs  to  shade  and  keep 
the  ground  moist  and  cool  around  the  roots.  One  who 
knows  any  thing  about  agriculture  will  readily  understand 
the  damaging  effect  to  the  cotton-plant  which  its  choking 
up  by  weeds  and  grass  would  have,  as  well  as  the  difficulty 
in  cultivating  it.  Plow  and  hoe  a  row  of  corn  which  has 
neither  weeds  nor  grass,  but  is  worked  simply  to  keep  the 
ground  stirred  and  mellow  around  the  growing  plant,  then 
plow  and  hoe  a  row  that  is  choked  with  weeds  and  grass — 
what  a  difference  there  is  !  A  dozen  rows  of  the  former 
can  be  worked  with  ease,  while  one  of  the  latter  is  gone 
through  with  infinite  strain  to  both  laborer  and  mule. 

Grass  and  weeds,  like  every  thing  else,  grew  rank  in 
this  wonderful  soil ;  but,  at  this  time,  running  riot  as  they 
had  done  during  the  war,  they  had  substantially  taken 
possession  of  the  country.  In  justice  to  the  cotton-plant, 
the  ground  should  have  been  stirred  and  hoed  so  frequently 
that  neither  weed  nor  grass  would  be  permitted  to  show 
itself.  Our  whole  plantation  should  have  been  cultivated 
three  times  a  month,  while  at  the  rate  we  were  going  wo 
could  not  get  over  our  fields  oftener  than  once  a  month. 
The  plant  was  not  receiving  anything  like  justice  at  our 
hands.  It  had  its  season  for  putting  out  its  lower  limbs, 
but  the  treatment  we  were  giving  it  would  not  allow  it  to 
do  this.  The  limbs  come  out  with  the  buds  at  the  top,  and 
if  they  are  not  allowed  to  come  then,  they  never  come  aft- 
erwards. There  would  be  no  shooting  of  limbs  from  the 
sides  of  the  stalk  after  the  weeds  and  grass  were  hoed 
away.  If  the  limbs  were  allowed  an  equal  start,  they 
would  frequently  run  out  as  fast  as  the  stalk  ran  up,  never 
stopping  until  the  space  of  from  four  to  six  feet  between 
the  rows,  and  the  interval  of  from  twelve  to  twenty-four 
inches  between  the  plants  in  their  resj:)ective  rows,  were 
passed  over  and  the  limbs  locked  together  in  a  full  and 
healthy  growth. 


272  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

The  labor  of  getting  our  crop  free  from  grass  and  weeds 
was  further  injuring  it.  The  croj)-grass  having  wrapped 
itself  around  the  plant,  in  pulling  it  away  from  the  root 
of  the  cotton  the  plant  itself  would  be  loosened  to  such  an 
extent  that  it  would  frequently  wilt  as  if  transplanted,  and 
as  fast  as  we  worked  our  fields  over  they  would  take  on  a 
more  decided  hue  of  yellow. 

Even  the  mere  working  of  a  field,  where  there  are  no 
weeds  to  destroy — simply  to  keep  the  ground  stirred  and 
to  put  fresh  mellow  earth  to  the  plant — checks  its  growth 
for  the  time  being.  How  much  more  was  this  the  case 
with  our  sick  cotton-plants,  which  we  had  to  search  for, 
and  then  pull  the  weeds  and  grass  away  !  It  was  a  tedious 
02:ieration  :  first,  to  find  the  plant ;  second,  to  cut  the  weeds 
and  grass  away  from  it;  third,  to  find  a  little  fresh  earth 
to  put  around  it.  Our  thirty  to  forty  hoe-hands,  divided 
into  their  three  squads,  made  very  small  clearings  in  the 
weed  and  grass-patches  from  day  to  day.  Striking  out 
wildly  and  carelessly  with  their  hoes,  the  negroes  fre- 
quently cut  down  stalks  of  cotton  which  were  needed  to 
make  the  required  stand,  and  as  often  in  pulling  away 
tufts  of  crop-grass  the  cotton-plant  would  come  with  it. 
We  began  cultivating  with  a  pretty  fair  stand  of  cotton — 
that  is,  the  plants  were  thick  enough  ;  but  every  time  our 
hoes  struck  the  ground  the  necessary  stalks  were  cut  up 
or  pulled  up  as  they  pulled  the  grass  back.  After  a  field 
was  gone  over,  therefore,  there  would  be  frequent  ugly 
gaps  in  the  cotton. 

It  was  pitiful  to  see  the  fields  before  they  were  hoed  out ; 
but  it  was  more  pitiful  to  see  them  afterwards.  The  cotton 
was  small  of  leaf  and  stalk,  wilted,  and  yellow,  with  no 
bottom  leaves  on  it.  What  little  loose  earth  was  visible 
was  in  great  clods,  like  the  bowlders  in  a  JS"ew  England 
field.  An  ugly  broad  band  of  grass  and  weeds  was  in  the 
middle  of  the  cotton  rows,  leaving  only  a  little  strip  of 
earth  between  it  and  the  plants.     The  plants  themselves 


CONDITION   OF   OUR   CROP.  273 

were  so  weak  they  could  scarcely  stand  alone.  The  whole 
scene  was  as  perfect  a  picture  of  despair  as  it  is  possible  to 
conceive;  but  the  consoling  word  was  passing  around, 
"  AYe've  seen  sicker  crops  than  these  come  out; — only  get 
your  cotton  out  of  the  grass,  and  with  a  late  season  and 
no  worm,  even  without  the  bottom  crop,  there  is  a  chance 
for  a  bale  to  the  acre."  There  was  the  usual  reasoning, 
moreover,  that  a  late  spring  means  a  late  fall.  The  village 
merchant  said  : 

"  1  would  n't  be  at  all  surprised  if  we  did  n't  have  frost 
until  December,  and  cotton  makes  until  frost  here." 

No  one  expected  the  worm,  or  at  least  such  was  the  talk. 
Instances  were  cited,  by  every  one  to  whom  I  spoke,  of  how 
the  worm  had  come  in  former  times  and  then  disappeared. 
And  so  the  thing  went  on,  everybody  breathing  hope  into 
one  another,  whilst  the  plantations  were  pictures  of  pov- 
erty. 

We  had  here  and  there  a  few  acres  of  cotton  which  was 
good  enough.  JN"ear  the  plantation  quarters  was  a  field 
which  Cato  and  James  had  cultivated  during  the  war. 
This  gave  ns  no  trouble,  growing  splendidly— a  beautiful 
sight — blossoming  and  boiling  from  the  ground.  This 
field  was  not  weed-ridden,  and,  if  we  had  known  it,  it  was 
the  key  to  our  whole  trouble.  But,  instead  of  attributing 
it  to  the  proper  cause,  we  set  it  down  as  being  better  land 
and  under  better  cultivation.  We  had  plowed  it  more 
thoroughly,  but  the  fact  is,  we  had  plowed  it  well  because 
it  was  already  in  a  good  state  of  cultivation  from  the  work 
of  previous  years. 

There  were  some  sand  ridges  on  the  place  on  which 
there  was  very  pretty  cotton,  and  the  bramble  patches 
were  turning  out  fairly,  simply  because  weeds  and  grass 
do  not  grow  on  sandy  land  or  in  bramble  patches.  This 
lesson  we  learned  later  in  our  cotton  experience. 

But  all  our  good  patches  together  would  not  have  meas- 
ured fifty  acres,  and,  except  the  bramble  patches,  these 
12* 


274  A   YEAR  OF   WRECK. 

were  really  the  poorest  land  we  bad  on  the  place,  and 
the  most  uncertain  for  cotton — for,  later  in  the  season, 
when  the  ground  would  become  parched  with  heat  and 
drouth,  the  cotton  on  this  sandy  land  would  burn  up,  be- 
fore it  could  possibly  make  over  half  a  crop ;  while  the 
cotton  on  the  heavy  black  land,  which  looked  so  utterly 
hopeless  now,  would  be  in  its  glory,  never  burning  out  or 
dying,  but  continuing  to  make  cotton  until  the  frost  came. 

This  black  land,  which  was  now  giving  us  so  much 
trouble — because  we  could  not  get  our  plows  into  it,  the 
weeds  and  grass  grew  so  fast  on  it,  and  where  consequently 
the  cotton  would  not  grow — is  called  buck-shot  land.  It 
should  be  plowed  in  the  early  spring  or  late  winter — Jan- 
uary, February,  or  March — when  the  rains  are  pouring 
down  and  the  ground  is  full  of  rain  and  seepage  water 
from  the  Mississippi,  so  that  it  runs  in  the  furrows.  This 
is  the  only  time  when  the  j)low  can  be  driven  into  it — that 
is,  when  thus  saturated  with  water.  The  ground  breaks 
up  in  great  cakes,  which  harden  when  the  rains  cease  like 
lumps  of  lime,  but  when  another  rain  comes  on,  these  melt 
down  into  round  particles  the  size  of  buck-shot,  as  lime 
slackens  when  water  is  poured  over  it,  only  of  course  there 
is  no  steam  or  heat. 

If,  this  first  year,  we  had  plowed  our  black  land,  when 
thus  saturated  with  rain,  we  could  have  gone  to  a  good 
depth,  burying  the  weed  and  grass-seeds,  so  that  they 
would  not  have  come  out  of  the  ground  simultaneously 
with  our  cotton.  And  what  a  magnificent  bed  this  would 
have  given  for  our  young  cotton  ! 

This  buck-shot  land  may  be  cultivated,  and  is  mellow 
just  the  depth  it  is  plowed  in  the  spring;  so,  if  plowed  wet, 
there  is  deep,  and  consequently  thorough,  cultivation,  and 
inevitably  good  cotton  ;  while,  if  plowed  when  dry,  it  is 
shallow,  and  shallow  cultivation  follows,  with  a  poor  crop,' 
inevitably.  We  have  undertaken  to  plow  this  buck-shot 
land  when   dry,  using  two   yoke  of  oxen  and  a  sub-soil 


GENERAL   DOBSON'S   RETURN.  275 

plow  ;  the  latter  we  broke  all  to  pieces,  and  we  left  the 
oxen  with  their  tongues  lolling  out  from  exhaustion,  with- 
out reaching  the  depth  which  it  was  perfectly  easy  to  reach 
with  a  small  j^air  of  mules  and  an  ordinary-sized  plow, 
when  the  same  ground  was  saturated  with  water. 

It  was  the  lack  of  knowledge  of  this  simple  fact  that 
cost  the  new-comers  this  year  many  thousand  bales  of  cot- 
ton. If  the  planter  who  reads  this  page  has  a  tough  piece 
of  buck-shot  land,  which  he  does  not  know  how  to  handle, 
let  him  try  the  above  plan,  and,  my  word  for  it,  he  will  not 
exchange  it,  after  seeing  the  result,  for  the  same  quantity 
of  land  on  another  part  of  his  place.  This  buck-shot 
land,  in  the  season  of  plowing,  unless  saturated  with  water, 
reminds  one  of  putty ;  and  when  it  dries  out  in  summer,  it 
is  like  dried  putty,  save  that  which  the  plows  have  turned 
up  in  the  spring  and  the  rains  have  slackened,  thus  ren- 
dering it  mellow  as  an  ash-heap. 


CHAPTEK  LIL 

GENERAL   DOBSON's    RETURN. 

General  Dobson  returned  about  the  15th  of  June,  land- 
ing at  Hebron.  "With  him  came  my  servant  George.  The 
boat  also  put  off  an  iron -hooped  barrel  and  a  very  large, 
stylish-looking  and  stylishly  marked  box. 

Dobson  said  they  were  to  go  up  to  the  store  with  his 
luggage.  On  the  way  up  from  the  landing  he  informed 
me  that  the  barrel  contained  beer,  which  he  had  purchased 
in  Memphis  as  he  came  along. 

"  I  thought  it  would  be  a  good  idea,"  he  explained,  '-to 
give  our  negroes  a  Fourth  of  July  celebration,  and  I  bought 


276  A   YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

the  beer  for  the  occasion.  It  will  give  them  something  to 
look  forward  to,  and  maybe  they  will  work  better.  In 
slaver}^  times  the  cultivation  season  was  over  by  the  Fourth 
of  July.     Are  we  likely  to  get  our  crop  in  shape  so  soon?" 

"  'No,  we  are  desperately  bad  off." 

"  Let  us  then  tell  the  laborers  that  we  will  give  them  a 
feast  if  they  will  get  us  out  of  the  grass  by  that  time.  Be- 
sides, as  their  teachers,  1  think  it  but  i-ight  to  start  them 
off  in  the  habit  of  celebrating  the  INTation's  independence. 
You  can  read  the  Declaration,  and  I  will  deliver  the  ora- 
tion. If  this  prospect  of  a  holiday  stimulates  them  to 
work  better,  as  I  think  it  will,  we  shall  thus  be  combining 
profit  with  duty.  What  do  you  think  of  the  idea?"  he 
asked,  after  pausing  long  enough  for  me  to  reply,  and  I 
foiling  to  do  so. 

"  Well,  it  is  pretty  much  all  exj)eriment,"  I  said.  "  This 
is  the  year  of  experiments.  We  may  hit  upon  some  plan, 
after  a  while,  that  will  stimulate  our  laborers  to  work  as 
they  ought  to.  The  plan  you  suggest  may  be  a  good  one  ; 
but,  to  be  frank,  I  have  n't  much  more  patriotism  left  in 
me  than  the  soldiers  had  towards  the  end  of  the  war,  and, 
instead  of  reading  the  Declaration  of  Indej)endence,  I  feel 
more  like  reading  the  riot  act.  Besides,  I  do  n't  know 
that  the  negroes  have  much  reason  to  be  jubilant  over  the 
Fourth  of  July.  It  was  n't  that  day  that  gave  them  their 
independence.  The  anniversary  of  the  EmancijDation 
Proclamation  is  their  Fourth  of  July." 

"I  don't  doubt  it  is  all  very  vexatious.  Still  I  think 
the  negroes  ^hould  be  educated  to  celebrate  all  national 
holidays." 

Just  then  the  wagon  passed  us  on  its  way  up  from  the 
landing,  the  mysterious  box  peering  up  above  the  barrel 
of  beer  and  the  General's  luggage. 

''What  have  you  there  ?"  I  inquired. 

"  You  know  you  gave  me  an  order  for  a  few  brier-root 
pipes,"  Dobson  answered,  looking  at  me  and  coloring  up. 


GENERAL   DOBSON'S    RETURN.  277 

"  Well,  I  went  into  a  tobacco  store  in  Cincinnati,  and  they 
showed  me  different  kinds.  I  took  half  a  dozen,  a  dozen, 
and  so  on,  of  each  variety— including  some  very  pretty 
meerschaums  with  bishops'  and  dogs'  heads,  and  eagles' 
claws  holding  plain  bowls.  I  also  selected  a  quantity  of 
silk  tobacco-pouches  and  meerschaum  cigar-holders  with 
amber  mouth-pieces.  I  did  n't  think  I  had  bought  so 
much,  but  when  they  handed  me  the  bill  it  amounted  to 
three  hundred  and  sixty-five  dollars.  That  is  what  is  in 
tliat  box  !  I  felt  like  sinking  into  the  floor  when  I  saw 
what  the  bill  figured  up,  but  1  had  agreed  to  take  the  arti- 
cles, and  I  would  n't  have  let  the  merchant  know  how  I 
was  sold  for  the  amount  of  the  bill  ! 

"  Fortunately  for  me,  I  had  on  my  person  that  money 
you  ordered  your  partner  in  the  drug-store  to  send  to  you 
by  me.  So  I  told  him  to  receipt  the  bill,  and  I  paid  him 
out  of  it.  You  can  just  credit  yourself  with  the  amount 
on  our  company  books,  and  charge  the  same  to  merchan- 
dise," he  added,  as  he  saw  me  looking  at  him  not  a  little 
ruefully.  "  That  reminds  me,"  he  said,  "  the  barrel  of  beer 
cost  thirty-five  dollars,  and  I  also  used  your  money  to  pay 
for  that,  which  you  will  want  credit  for,  and  which,  I 
think,  should  be  charged  to  expenses,  should  it  not?" 

*'  Yes,  I  think  it  should,  unless  you  are  a  mind  to  con- 
sider it  a  permanent  investment ;  and  in  that  case  it  should 
be  charged  to  the  plantation,"  I  said,  with  a  ghastly  at- 
tempt to  bo  facetious. 

The  plantation  was  proving  such  a  sieve  for  money,  that 
we  were  growing  to  be  none  too  flush.  I  had  a  particular 
place  for  the  sum  my  partner  in  the  drug-store  was  send- 
ing me  by  Dobson,  and  here  were  four  hundred  dollars  out 
of  six  hundred  he  had  for  me  trundling  along  up  to 
the  plantation  store  in  the  shape  of  a  box  of  pipes  and  a 
barrel  of  beer  !  Think  of  it — meerschaum  pipes,  meer- 
schaum cigar-holders  with  amber  tips,  and  silk  tobacco- 


278  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

pouches,  for  an  exclusively  negro  trade,  in  a  plantation 
store  ! 

"  I  am  sure  I  do  n't  know  what  we  shall  ever  do  with 
that  quantity  of  pipes,"  I  said.  "  This  is  a  great  smoking 
community,  I  know,  but  no  one  ever  trades  at  our  store, 
except  our  own  hands.  I  doubt,  however,  if  the  whole 
county  traded  with  us,  judging  from  the  size  of  your  box, 
and  the  amount  of  your  bill,  whether  they  could  exhaust 
the  supply." 

"It  is  a  very  unfortunate  purchase,  but  what  could  I  do 
after  I  had  bought  them,  but  pay  for  them  ?  I  never  could 
have  spunked*up  courage  enough  to  tell  the  merchant  how 
badly  I  was  fooled.  So  I  did  the  other  thing,  which  was 
to  take  them  as  if  I  really  wanted  them.  But  it  does  n't 
matter  much,"  he  added,  shortly  after,  as  if  he  had  been 
revolving  the  thing  over  in  his  mind  ;  "  even  if  we  do  n't 
sell  a  pipe — and  of  course  we  shall  sell  some,  because  you 
said  the  negroes  called  for  them — three  bales  of  cotton 
this  fall  will  pay  for  this  experience  of  mine." 

''  I  only  hope  it  will  teach  you  the  lesson,"  I  said  a  lit- 
tle snappishly,  "  never  again  to  buy,  for  the  plantation, 
what  you  see,  but  to  buy  only  that  which  we  want :  first, 
having  a  written  list  before  entering  a  place  to  purchase, 
and  then  only  getting  that  which  your  list  calls  for." 

'•  I  think  it  will  be  a  lesson  to  me  for  the  future,"  he  said, 
laughing  ;  "  I  do  n't  believe  I  would  ever  buy  another  such 
a  box  of  pipes,  or  any  thing  else  in  the  same  way." 

"  We  shall  hardly  need  to  buy  any  more  pipes,"  I  re- 
plied, determining  in  my  own  mind  to  make  the  best  of  it, 
"  if  we  should  continue  the  Hebron  enterprise  for  fifty 
years  !  But  what  possessed  you  to  get  cigar-holders  ?  You 
know  we  have  no  cigars  to  sell." 

"  That  is  so,  but  I  never  thought  of  it."  Then  he  turned 
instantly,  and,  looking  at  me  very  earnestly,  said  : 

"  Mr.  Harding,  I  will  esteem  it  as  a  favor  if  you  will 
keep  this  pipe  experience  to  yourself     To  say  nothing  of 


GENERAL   DOBSON's   RETURN.  279 

the  quantity  of  the  purchase,  it  wasn't  just  the  thing  to 
buy  meerschaums  and  silk  pouches !  There  is  a  hat  for 
vou,  now,  if  we  ever  get  into  civilization  again  together, 
if  you  '11  keep  mum  on  this  subject." 

I  promised  that  it  should  not  go  out  of  the  family,  only 
I  must  be  allowed  to  laugh  over  it  as  much  as  I  wanted  to, 
and  to  say  "  pipes  "  to  him  if  he  ever  got  obstreperous. 

"  Certainly,"  he  answered. 

That  night  Dobson  opened  the  pipes,  but  he  could  only 
display  a  small  portion  of  them.  There  were  enough  to 
liave  filled  up  all  the  shelves  of  our  store.  They  really 
made  the  shelves  look  cheerful.  It  was  right  jolly  to  see 
the  laughing  Dutch  faces  as  frontispieces  on  the  pipes. 
Birds'  beaks,  grinning  monkeys'  faces,  and  an  endless  va- 
riety of  caricatures  of  men's  faces,  as  well  as  those  of  birds 
and  animals,  made  the  collection  quite  a  novelty.  It  was, 
in  one  sense,  a  show,  and  the  negroes  never  got  tired  of 
hanging  over  tlie  counter,  and  feasting  their  eyes  on  tho 
display.  It  got  noised  about  in  the  neighborhood,  and  ne- 
groes from  adjoining  plantations  came  to  see  the  sight,  but 
without  a  cent  in  their  pockets  to  buy. 

AYe  sold,  during  the  season,  perhaps  fifty  dollars'  worth* 
The  rest  we  shipped  to  an  auction  store  up  in  St.  Louis, 
and  they  netted  us  seventeen  dollars  and  a  half. 

Dobson's  pipe  experience  then,  cost  ns  three  hundred 
dollars.  The  barrel  of  beer  cost  thirty-five  dollars.  Nei- 
ther of  these  items  was  included  in  the  original  Dobson 
estimate.  Indeed,  in  the  light  of  practical  results,  as  tho 
reader  will  already  have  seen,  Dobson's  estimate  was  no 
longer  recognizable.  I  told  him  as  much  after  our  first 
dinner  together,  of  bean  soup,  black  coffee,  and  hoe-cake, 
and  when  we  had  squared  out  for  a  smoke  and  a  talk. 

Just  as  I  was  about  dropping  off  to  sleep,  the  first  night 
after  Dobson's  return,  I  was  aroused  by  a  jar  upon  our 
cabin-floor,  which  was  followed  by  a  succession  of  noises, 


280  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

like  the  moving  of  chairs,  tables,  etc.  Then  there  was  a 
howl,  and  Dobson  called  out : 

"Say,  Mr.  Harding,  can  you  tell  me  where  the  matches 
are?  I  want  to  strike  a  light.  The  mosquitos  have  got 
under  my  bar.  I  have  barked  my  shins  in  this  clutter, 
and  the  mosquitos  are  swarming  on  my  bare  limbs.  I 
would  as  soon  be  standing  in  a  nest  of  hornets." 

I  hurried  to  Dobson's  rescue.  Used  to  the  room  as  I  was, 
I  found  the  match-box  instantly,  and  struck  a  light,  which 
revealed  him  wedged  in  between  a  couple  of  pieces  of  fur- 
niture, and  striking  out  wildly  at  the  mosquitos.  Dobson 
had  three  exposed  points — face,  hands,  and  ankles — and 
there  was  a  mosquito  for  every  pore  of  his  body. 

I  lighted  a  candle,  and  told  him  to  jump  into  bed  with 
it,  which  he  did,  welts  and  all.  For  once  Dobson  was  in 
a  hurr}^.  Notwithstanding  I  skipped  around  the  room 
pretty  lively,  the  mosquitos  no  sooner  found  their  first 
s victim  caged  away  from  them,  than  they  went  for  me.  So 
I  hastened  under  my  bar.  Then  I  called  out  to  Dobson  to 
hold  the  candle  close  up  to  the  mosquito,  wherever  he  found 
one  under  his  bar,  and  he  would  fly  into  it.  This  he  pro- 
ceeded to  do,  scratching  the  bitten  places  on  his  limbs  and 
face  meanwhile.  By  the  aid  of  the  candle  he  destroyed 
fifty-seven.  I  then  instructed  him  to  put  his  candle  on  the 
chair  by  his  bedside,  and  then  to  tuck  his  bar  in  carefully 
all  around.     When  he  had  done  this,  he  said  : 

"What  next?" 

"  Blow  your  candle  out,  through  the  meshes." — And 
thus  was  Dobson  safely  housed  for  the  night. 


WE   PILL   OURSELVES   WITH   TALK.  281 


CUAPTER  Lin. 

WE   FILL   OURSELVES   WITH   TALK. 

The  sick-call  is  not,  as  a  general  thing,  an  agreeable 
sound,  but  the  morning  after  Dobson's  arrival,  I  heard  it 
with  a  feeling  almost  akin  to  pleasure.  While  it  told  its 
sad  story  of  the  presence  of  suffering,  it  was  no  longer  a 
command  for  me  to  administer  to  this  suffering.  Dobson 
was  now  at  the  helm  of  our  sick  craft,  with  all  his  finished 
skill  and  great  experience,  and  my  service  as  a  physician 
was  at  an  end.  During  my  practice  I  had,  with  only  my 
knowledge  as  a  druggist  to  guide  me,  given  quinine,  blue- 
mass,  opium,  castor-oil  and  cholera-mixture,  without  any 
intelligent  analysis  of  the  disorder  in  any  case.  But  now 
only  the  proper  medicines  would  be  administered,  after  a 
careful  examination.  There  would  also  be  added  that  con- 
fidence in  the  treatment  which  a  physician  always  inspires, 
almost  as  efficacious  as  his  medicine. 

I  felt  as  if  I  had  been  relieved  of  more  than  half  my 
load.  My  attention,  which  had  hitherto  been  divided  be- 
tween the  field  and  hospital — much  the  larger  half  being 
given  to  the  hospital — could  now  be  concentrated  on  the 
former.  The  responsibility  which  I  felt  on  account  of  the 
sick  people  had  been  very  great,  and  my  suspense  terrible. 
To  be  relieved,  and  released,  was  a  great  comfort  to  me.  I 
formally  turned  the  cases  over  to  Dobson  the  evening  of 
his  arrival. 

On  the  morning  following  I  had  taken  my  early  coffee, 
leaving  Dobson  at  his  morning  nap,  and  when  Billy 
sounded  the  sick-call  1  had  been  in  the  field  with  the  hoe- 


282  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

gangs,  spurring  them  up,  for  more  than  two  hours,  and  by 
the  time  our  breakfast-horn  sounded,  shortly  afterwards, 
we  had  opened  up  a  good  many  rows  of  cotton  to  air  and 
sunlight. 

Whether  Dobson's  coming  had  revived  my  spirits,  so 
that  1  saw  differently,  or  whether  it  was  so  in  fact,  it  cer- 
tainly seemed  the  hoe-gangs  made  better  strokes,  and 
moved  at  a  livelier  pace  than  had  been  their  wont.  I  told 
them  at  once  about  the  barrel  of  beer,  and  the  Fourth  of 
July,  which  may  have  spurred  them  up,  as  Dobson  thought 
it  would.  It  certainly  drew  large  promises  out  c^  them. 
Every  thing  appeared  brighter  this  morning,  and  I  went 
back  to  my  breakfast  in  a  glow. 

Dobson,  as  if  by  instinct,  was  in  the  heated-term  in-door 
costume  of  the  country — shirt,  drawers,  socks  and  slippers 
— engaged  in  mixing  powders  for  the  sick,  and  giving 
elaborate  directions.  He  was  evidently  very  much  in  earn- 
est. G-eorge's  arrival  was  the  signal  for  Mary's  retirement 
from  the  cooking  department  of  our  mess.  She  had  only 
held  on,  out  of  the  abundance  of  her  own  and  Jimmy's 
kindness,  unwilling  to  see  me  perish  for  want  of  something 
to  eat,  and  indeed  I  felt  very  grateful  to  them.  On  the 
other  hand,  George  seemed  to  be  delighted  to  get  back  into 
my  personal  service,  and  told  Mary  she  could  go  at  once. 

Dobson  and  I  sat  down  on  this  first  morning  to  George's 
first  effort  in  the  way  of  breakfast ;  or,  rather,  being  hungry, 
I  sat  down  and  began  eating  at  once,  while  he  came  in 
when  I  was  nearly  half  through.  If  I  had  not  been  so 
hungry,  or  if  I  had  been  a  little  patient,  this  would  have  been 
an  opportunity  for  him  to  keep  me  waiting.  I  will  here 
remark  that  during  this  entire  season,  Dobson  and  myself 
never  sat  down  to  a  meal  together.  He  was  always  at  least 
five  minutes  late.  It  soon  came  to  be  regarded  by  both 
of  us  as  a  recognized  custom — nothing  was  said,  or  appar- 
ently thought  of  it,  on  either  side.  As  a  result,  however, 
my  meal  was  always  hot,  while  his  was  frequently  cold. 


WE   FILL   OURSELVES   WITH   TALK.  283 

There  was  ix  happy  compromise  in  this  feature  of  our  do- 
mestic intercourse,  which  otherwise  might  have  occasioned 
unpleasant  scenes :  I  did  not  ask  Dobson  to  be  prompt  at 
the  meal ;  he  did  not  ask  me  to  observe  tlie  ceremony  of 
waiting  for  him;  and  so  we  got  along  together  without  a 

"  Did  you  tell  our  people  about  our  proposition  to  observe 
the  Fourth?  "  Dobson  inquired  upon  taking  his  seat  at  the 
table,  and  while  spreading  his  napkin  over  his  knees. 

"  "Yes,  sir  ;  I  told  them  about  it  the  first  thing  this  morn- 
ing." 

"  What  do  they  say  ?  " 

"  They  say  they  will  'get  the  cotton  out  of  grass,  sure.' 
They  certainly  have  been  putting  in  good  work  this  morn- 
ing." 

"Mr.  Harding,  I  observed  you -came  in  from  the  field 
without  an  umbrella.  Are  you  not  in  the  habit  of  carry- 
ing one  when  you  go  out  in  the  hot  sun  ?  " 

"  No,  sir ;  I  never  carry  one.  I  think  it  would  be  setting 
a  bad  example  to  our  laborers.  If  they  can  work  all  day 
in  the  hot  sun,  I  think  we  should  be  able  to  ride  out  in  it. 
Besides,  I  think  this  thing  of  getting  sick,  is  pretty  much 
a  matter  of  will.  I  am  determined  to  be  well,  ergo,  I  am 
well.  There  is  not  a  hand  on  the  place  has  undergone  the 
exposure  I  have,  and  yet  I  have  not  been  sick  an  hour.  If 
they  would  stop  eating  filthy  fish,  green  fruit,  and  exercise 
their  will  as  I  do,  I  do  n't  believe  there  would  be  a  sick 
man  in  our  quarters  to-day.  There  was  that  white  en- 
gineer Johnson  brought ;  he  had  a  mild  attack  of  small-pox. 
There  was  no  sort  of  will  in  the  fellow,  and  the  breath 
just  naturally  left  his  body.  Jimmy  Watson  had  a  dread- 
ful attack  of  the  same  disease,  but  his  will  pulled  him 
through.  Half  the  deaths  on  the  place  are  the  result  of  a 
lack  of  will.  No,  you  don't  catch  me  under  an  umbrella, 
it  is  well  enough  for  women  to  shade  themselves,  but  it  was 
never  intended  that  a  man  should  allow  a  piece  of  cloth  to 


284  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

get  between  his  face  and  the  sun.  That  would  be  a  pretty 
spectacle,  would  it  not,  to  see  a  farmer  hiding  himself  un- 
der a  cotton  umbrella  ?  " 

"And  yet,  most  planters  here  ride  out  under  an  um- 
brella." 

*'I  know  they  do,  but  it  is,  nevertheless,  an  effeminate 
habit,  and  I,  for  one,  am  going  to  do  what  I  can  by  my  ex- 
ample to  break  it  up.  If  they  would  throw  away  their 
umbrellas,  stop  drinking  whisky,  and  practice  their  will, 
they  need  have  no  fear  of  sickness." 

"Well,  that  is  a  novel  idea,  to  be  sure;  but,  notwith- 
standing 3'our  practice  of  will,  I  fear  you  are  considerably 
the  worse  for  wear  ;  and  I  do  n't  believe  it  would  take  any 
too  much  to  put  you  on  your  back,"  said  Dobson,  laughing 
good  naturedly,  as  he  scrutinized  my  face. 

"  I^ot  a  bit  of  it;  I  may  be  thin — I  know  I  am  tliat — 
but  my  exposure  has  simply  hardened  me.  1  am  down  to 
fighting  trim  now,  and  am  just  sickness-proof." 

"Yery  pretty  theories,  Mr.  Harding,  but  we  shall  see 
how  they  work  out." 

"Yes,  you  will  see  ;  I  am  perfectly  willing  to  stand,  or 
fall,  by  the  test  of  time.  But,  by  the  way,  you  remember 
our  friend  in  the  rear,  Major  Layton?  " 

"Yes." 

"  We  rode  down  to  the  village  together  the  other  day  to 
get  our  mails.  AVhile  I  went  in  to  get  them  the  Major  re- 
mained on  the  outside.  But,  a  moment  later,  he  came 
rushing  in  with  a  flushed  face,  and  a  cut  over  his  left  eye, 
saying:  '  A  party  of  young  fellows  came  by  where  I  was 
standing;  one  of  them  struck  me  as  you  see,  and  the  rest 
laughed,  crying  out,  'Hit  him  again  ;  he's  got  no  friends 
here.'     I  came  in  for  fear  of  further  harm.' 

"I  asked  the  Major  who  the  parties  were.  He  said, 
'Some  of  the  young  bloods  of  the  town.'  Was  there 
no  one  by  to  admonish  them  as  to  their  course  ?  '  Yes, 
Tyler  was  there.      He  scolded  them,  and  appeared  very 


WE    FILL   OURSELVES    WITH    TALK.  285 

mad,  but,  as  I  turned  to  come  in,  I  caught  him  giving  them 
a  sly  wink,  as  much  as  to  say  that  his  scolding  was  all  for 
effect,  and  tell  them  to  go  ahead.'  We  left  town  shortly 
after,  and,  though  not  further  molested,  we  were  looked  at 
by  many  scowling  faces." 

"That  is  a  pretty  way  to  treat  a  new-comer,  is  it  not? 
But  the  same  thing  is  going  on  all  over  the  South.  Of 
course  not  the  tenth  part  will  ever  be  known,  but  enough 
is  leaking  out  in  the  North  to  make  our  friends  very  nerv- 
ous about  us.  Every  one  I  met  had  something  to  say 
about  the  horrible  murders  he  had  read  about,  of  men  more 
or  less  prominent  in  the  localities  from  which  they  came, 
and  who  had  come  to  this  country  as  we  have.  '  Do  you 
feel  safe  down  there  ?  '  was  the  common  question." 

"  Well,  in  one  sense  we  are  not  safe,"  I  said.  "  To  be^in 
with,  human  life  is  held  of  but  little  more  value  than 
mere  animal  life.  Look  at  the  murders  committed  in  the 
village  since  we  have  been  here.  They  would  number 
more  than  all  those  committed  in  a  Northern  State  for  five 
years.  The  village  is  full  of  men  who  are  known  to  be 
murderers,  and  they  have  the  whip-handle.  They  are 
fi-eely  admitted  into  what  is  called  '  society,'  and  they  make 
the  sentiment.  Give  a  gang  of  murderers,  anywhere,  full 
sway,  and  what  a  community  it  is!  If  our  village  is  an 
index  of  the  country,  the  South  is  to-day  ruled  by  thieves 
and  murderers — not  that  they  are  on  the  bench,  or  wear 
the  robe,  but  they  make  the  sentiment.  These  classes  are 
very  jealous  of  their  domain,  and  when  they  see  any  one 
going  quietly  along,  and  minding  his  own  business,  tem- 
perate, moral,  and  law-abiding,  they  know  at  once  that  he 
is  their  opposite.  How  easy  it  is  to  send  a  bullet  through 
the  bead  of  such  a  person  !  I  have  no  doubt  there  are 
plenty  of  old  settlers  here  who  perfectly  abhor  this  state 
of  affairs.  But  you  could  never  learn  this  by  any  thing 
they  say,  or  by  their  looks.  The  feeling  is  hid  away  in  the 
secret  recesses  of  their  hearts,  because  they  know  full  well 


286  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

if  they  should  raise  their  voices  it  would  be  the  signal  for 
their  slaughter.  It  was  only  the  other  week  that  one  of 
this  class  said  to  me  in  response  to  some  hot  words  of  mine 
on  the  subject:  'Do  you  see  my  gray  hairs?  It  is  the 
knowledge  of,  and  being  eye-witness  to,  inhuman  murders 
here,  by  the  dozen,  and  the  further  knowledge  of  the  fact 
that  there  is  no  sentiment  of  suflScient  courage  to  raise  its 
voice  against  them,  that  has  put  these  gray  hairs  in  my 
head.  I  know  people  that  are  just  as  much  oj^posed  to 
this  state  of  affairs  as  I  am,  and  yet  not  a  word  ever  passes 
our  lips  on  the  subject.  We  hardly  dare  think,  for  fear 
our  faces  will  tell  the  story,  much  less  speak.  I  have  my 
gin-house,  home,  family,  and  my  own  life — if  I  were  to 
say  a  word,  my  property  would  be  destroyed,  ray  family 
made  homeless,  and  I  would  be  murdered.  Therefore  my 
lips  are  sealed.*  And  then  he  looked  around  with  a  half- 
frightened  air  to  see  if  there  was  a  possibility  that  any 
any  body  had  overheard  him.  I  saw  him  again  a  few  days 
later,  and  he  told  me,  with  a  frightened  look,  we  must  not 
be  seen  talking  together.  '  I  have  been  spotted,'  he  said, 
'  because  we  were  seen  talking  earnestly  together  the  other 
day.' 

"First,  then,  there  is  the  general  sentiment,  created  by 
the  lawless,  and  acquiesced  in  by  all ;  then  there  is  the  sec- 
tional feeling  against  us,  strong  as  the  love  of  life,  and  bit- 
ter as  a  family  feud.  Seeing  us  quietly  at  our  task,  how 
easy  it  is  for  the  thieves  and  murderers  to  raise  the  cry  of 
'Yankees,'  'Our  enemies,'  in  the  light  of  which  all  classes 
find  a  common  cause  against  us.  I  do  n't  believe  murder- 
ers have  much  love  of  country  about  them,  but  these  make 
the  guard  of  the  fields  they  love  to  roam  in.  Keenly  on 
the  alert,  none  will  see  sooner  than  they  the  material  of 
which  this  Northern  immigration  is  composed.  If  it  means 
law  and  order,  they  will  of  course  want  none  of  it,  and, 
by  the  array  of  sectional  spirit,  no  true  Southerner  will 
take  sides  with  us.     Thus,  the  feeling  of  distrust  toward 


WE    FILL    OURSELVES    WITH    TALK.  287 

US  will  soon  pass  into  that  of  hatred,  if  it  has  not  already- 
done  so. 

"I  have  never  hesitated  to  speak  against  this  murderous, 
lawless  element,  because  I  felt  that  to  live  here,  and  not 
do  so,  would  be  its  indorsement.  This  is  just  where  I 
blame  the  good  clement  of  the  Southern  people;  if  they 
would  take  sides  against  murder  and  lawlessness,  these 
criminals  would  either  be  punished  or  seek  new  pastures. 
And  we  shall  never  have  a  healthy  state  of  affairs  until 
such  is  the  cai5e.  'Going  back  on  the  South,'  is  a  potent 
lash,  that  whips  everybody  into  line.  When  a  murder 
occurs,  all  that  is  necessary  to  be  known  is  that  the  victim 
was  a  stranger,  and  that  the  murderer  was  a  'true  South- 
erner,' as  is  the  stereotyped  expression.  Of  course,  now 
and  then,  with  this  frequency  of  murder,  a  '  true  Southerner' 
is  bit.     Then  there  is  great  expression  of  grief." 

"Barring  this  cheapness  of  life,  do  you  think  we  are  safe 
here?" 

"No,  sir;  I  don't.  I  think,  sparcely  settled  as  this 
neighborhood  is  by  whites,  there  are  a  hundred  people  all 
around  us,  burning  to  pull  triggers  on  us  ;  and,  if  we  were 
to  be  shot  down,  the  buzzards  would  have  to  care  for  us, 
for  the  reason  that,  however  much  the  good  element  might 
wish  to  do  so,  they  would  not  dare  to  give  us  a  decent  burial. 
I  don't  believe  there  is  a  drop  of  love  for  us — on  the  con- 
trary, it  is  all  gall  and  wormwood.  Of  course  the  soldiers 
at  the  village  are  some  protection  to  us.  If  they' were  not 
here  our  position  would  indeed  be  critical ;  and  the  people 
here  have  an  idea  that  the  President  is  about  to  take  them 
away.     Do  you  think  that  likely?" 

"It  looks  a  little  that  way.  Andy  Johnson  has  cer- 
tainly gone  over,  body  and  soul,  to  the  opposition.  But, 
Mr.  Harding,  you  have  spoken  frequently  of  'the  good 
element.'  Does  not  an  element  cease  to  be  good,  when  it 
becomes  a  shield  to  crime  and  wrong-doing?  " 

"That  is  certainly  the  doctrine  up  in  God's  country; 


288  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

but,  then,  there  have  been  no  hundred  years  of  slavery  up 
there,  shutting  out  raUroads,  muzzling  the  press,  prevent- 
ing immigration,  except  such  as  was  brought  in  the  holds 
of  slave-traders,  or  that  which  drifted  here,  and  could  put 
on  the  sentiment  of  a  locality  as  you  do  your  coat.  The 
South  has  been  barred  effectually  to  all  enterprises,  and  to 
all  sentiments  but  one,  that  of  slavery.  You  may  talk  of 
your  despotisms  of  the  old  world,  but  there  never  was  any 
thing  like  this.  Only  think  of  the  cotton  burned  here  dur- 
ing the  war  by  order.  Was  there  ever  any  thing  more 
unreasonable,  or  more  suicidal?  And  yet  see  how  the 
edict  was  obeyed.  '  The  North  is  taking  away  our  slaves,' 
was  the  cry  put  in  their  mouths,  and  yet  here  was  a  real, 
tangible  treasure,  worth  more  than  all  their  slaves,  which 
they  were  burning  up  themselves,  without  a  public  mur- 
mur, because  it  was  the  sentiment  of  the  South  to  do  so." 

"But  that  was  considered  patriotism !  " 

"It  was  none  the  less  despotism.  "While  our  armies 
were  filled  with  alacrity,  how  much  of  the  crops  of  the 
North  would  have  been  destroyed  by  a  similar  order  to  that 
which  caused  the  cotton  to  be  burned  in  the  South  ?  Not 
a  grain.  There  is  no  patriotism  in  the  North  which  would 
submit  to  herding  with  cut-throats.  How  long  did  it  take 
the  good  element  in  California,  and  in  other  portions  of  the 
West,  to  organize  their  vigilance  committees?  It  was  the 
work  of  a  few  hours  ;  and  it  accomplished  that,  in  as  short 
a  time,  which  would  otherwise  have  been  the  work  of  a 
generation.  The  remedy  of  the  vigilance  committee  had, 
in  addition  to  its  promptness,  the  recommendation  of  thor- 
oughness, because  in  removing  the  lawless,  it  also  destroyed 
their  influence.  It  is  the  influence  of  the  lawless  here  that 
is  quite  as  damaging  as  their  acts,  and  if  you  are  to  wait 
for  them  to  die  natural  deaths,  this  influence  will  continue 
to  extend.  There  is  a  certain  percentage,  in  all  communi- 
ties, of  those  naturally  lawless,  or,  rather,  who  have  not  the 
power  to  withstand  lawlessness;  and  they  join  and  adhere 


WE    FILL   OURSELVES    WITH   TALK.  289 

to  the  bad  clement  as  naturally  as  barnacles  form  on  the 
bottom  of  ships.  We  are  cutting  down  the  weeds  in  our 
fields  to  destroy  their  influence  on  the  cotton.  Apply  the 
same  remedy  to  the  bad  element  here,  and  the  vigilance 
committee  will  have  done  its  work." 

"  Then  you  would  be  in  favor  of  a  vigilance  committee 
here?" 

"  In  the  absence  of  the  law,  yes,  if  it  were  feasible.  But 
if  we  were  to  suggest  it,  the  lawless  would  raise  the  cry, 
'It  is  an  attack  on  the  South.'  A  sectional  quarrel  would 
be  the  result ;  we  should  grace  the  halters  intended  for  the 
guilty;  and,  under  this  sectional  pretext,  the  murderers 
would  walk  forth  so  many  heroes.  So  I  do  n't  think  we 
shall  care  to  undertake  it,  and  thus  the  thing  will  have 
to  wear  out." 

''It  may  wear  us  out  in  the  meantime,"  Dobson  said, 
with  a  sober  face. 

"Yes,  the  rebellion  is  only  half-fought  through.  There 
are  no  armies  in  the  field,  but  there  are  j)lenty  of  bush- 
whackers. It  is  when  your  enemy  takes  to  the  woods  that 
the  contest  is  tedious.  It  is  no  longer  an  attack  directly 
on  the  government,  because  the  South  is  now  again  under 
the  government,  but  it  is  an  attack  upon  its  policy,  all 
the  more  insidious  for  that  fact.  It  is  when  the  sinner,  un- 
der the  cloak  of  religion,  gets  into  the  church,  that  he  can 
do  the  most  harm.  True,  slavery  no  longer  exists,  as  the 
rallying-point  for  the  South.  The  slaves  are  free,  and  this 
mine  of  wealth  is  no  longer  here  to  be  guarded.  By  the 
way,  there  is  one  point  on  which  I  can  sympathize  with  the 
late  slave-holder.  Take  any  man  in  the  North,  and  let  him 
have  a  hundred  notes  for  a  thousand  dollars  apiece,  secured 
by  a  mortgage— would  he  not  feel  like  ripping  out  an  oath 
against  a  party  who,  by  some  maneuver,  should  render  these 
notes  valueless  ?     Each  slave  was  like  one  of  these  notes." 

"  But  I  rather  think  the  South  was  its  own  worst  enemy, 
13 


290  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

in  that  her  people  brought  on  the  war,  which  resulted  in 
the  loss  of  what  you  say  is  equivalent  to  so  many  notes  for 
a  given  amount." 

"  Yes,  that  is  true,  but  it  is  human  nature  to  attribute 
one's  financial  losses  to  every  thing  but  one's  own  fault. 
The  Southern  people,  in  their  sense  of  perfection,  could 
not  be  made  to  feel  themselves  their  own  executioners. 
Their  slaves,  standing  in  the  light  of  so  many  bank-notes 
of  value,  were  taken  from  them  by  the  government. 
They  fought  to  keep  them.  How,  then,  could  they  be 
charged  with  their  loss  ?  Such  would  be  their  mode  of 
reasoning.  The  money  view  is,  however,  only  one  aspect 
— the  other  is  that  slavery  had  stood  in  the  way  of  prog- 
ress to  this  country,  and  the  true  victory  of  the  war  is 
that  it  no  longer  stands  there.  The  overthrow  of  slavery, 
rightly  viewed,  is  like  that  additional  expense,  frequently 
incurred,  to  make  a  great  paying  enterprise  a  success,  and 
for  the  lack  of  which  it  would  be  a  failure.  So  long  as 
slavery  existed  the  South  was  essentially  a  failure,  as  com- 
pared with  other  portions  of  this  country.  It  was  abso- 
lutely necessary  that  the  slave-holders  should  contribute 
their  slave  capital  to  make  it  a  success." 

''  That  is  another  one  of  your  theories,  Mr.  Harding. 
How  much  talk  do  you  think  you  would  have  to  expend 
before  convincing  one  of  these  old  slave-holders  that  slavery 
was  a  curse  to  the  South,  and  that  its  removal  would  now 
cause  it  to  prosper  ?  Besides,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  the  slaves 
are  not  a  loss  to  the  South.  They  are  here  still,  only  in 
another  shape." 

"  I  tried  it,  not  long  since,  with  one  of  them,  and  his 
answer  was,  '  Look  at  your  fields.  Do  you  call  that  pros- 
perity ?  I  do  n't.'  I  could  not  say  a  word.  Yes,  you  are 
of  course  right  in  saying  the  slaves  are  here  still,  but  in 
a  commercial  sense  they  are  lost.  But  we  are  spending  a 
good  deal  of  time  in  talk  over  our  breakfast." 

"  Well,  we  must  have  something  for  our  table,  and  as 
we  hav  n't  much  to  eat,  we  can  fill  up  with  talk." 


MR.   IIARDING's   sickness,   ETC.  291 


CHAPTEE  LIV. 

MR.     UARDING'S     sickness    AND     UMBRELLA     THEORIES     EX- 
PLODED— COOL  WATER  DISCOVERED. 

Notwithstanding  Dobson's  medical  skill  and  close  per- 
sonal attention,  there  was  no  diminution  in  the  number  of 
our  sick,  while  there  was  an  alarming  increase  in  the  num- 
ber of  fatal  cases.  At  one  time  we  had  three  men  dying 
in  the  hospital.  It  was  a  fearful  experience.  All  night 
long  adjoining  our  bed-room  were  the  fevered  moaning,  the 
mad  laugh,  and,  finally,  the  death-rattle— and  then  the 
lifeless  forms  of  men  who,  but  three  days  before,  were 
among  our  active  workers.  Such  fatality  was  demoraliz- 
ing to  all  of  us.  Dobson's  treatment  was  powerless  to  ar- 
rest what  seemed  to  be  ordinary  ague,  until  it  had  passed 
into  a  low  form  of  fever,  attacking  the  brain,  after  which 
it  was  certainly  fatal. 

He  finally  decided  to  administer  larger  doses  of 
quinine.  Accordingly,  for  nearly  two  weeks,  Dobson 
used  at  the  rate  of  an  ounce  a  day.  When  a  case  of 
chills  was  reported,  he  would  fill  the  patient  up,  giving 
him  thirty  grains,  in  eight-grain  doses,  two  hours  apart, 
commencing  as  soon  as  the  fever  was  over,  and  there 
would  be  no  second  chill.  The  third  day  the  patient 
would  be  at  work  again.  Then,  on  the  seventh,  four- 
teenth, and  twenty-first  days,  he  would  again  give  thirty 
grains  in  the  same  way,  thus  generally  preventing  a  re- 
currence. Dobson  was  in  ecstacy  over  the  hapj^y  effect  of 
increased  doses  of  quinine.  The  whole  plantation  had  to 
be  rationed  with  it  regularly  before  breakfast,  and  it  was 
seriously  meditated  to  put  it  in  the  food  along  with  the 
salt! 


292  A   YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

We  soon  reached  the  conclasion,  arrived  at  by  all  swamp 
planters,  that  we  could  no  more  do  without  quinine  than 
without  meat  or  meal.     Dobson  said  : 

"  You  ought  to  take  it,  Mr.  Harding,  as  steady  diet." 

"  Where 's  the  use  of  taking  medicine,  when  one  is 
well?"   I  asked. 

"  It  is  the  ounce  of  prevention  in  your  case,  and  the 
very  best  thing  you  can  do  is  to  get  your  system  under 
its  influence  at  once.  If  you  will  only  look  in  the  glass? 
you  will  see  how  yellow  you  are." 

"  Oh,  my  dear  fellow,  that  is  only  a  healthy  tan,  and 
comes  of  my  not  riding  around  under  an  umbrella.  Don't 
you  see  how  splendidly  my  will  and  umbrella  theories  are 
working?" 

"  Time  enough  to  boast  of  that  when  the  malarial  sea- 
son is  over — you  are  not  out  of  the  woods  yet.  It's  a  long 
time  before  frost,  and  we  '11  have  no  healthy  atmosphere 
until  then.     If  you  escape  sickness,  it  will  be  miraculous." 

Dobson's  sjDeech  was  prophetic,  and  this  was  my  last  day 
of  boasting — the  following  one  saw  me  down  with  a  chill, 
my  "  will  "  and  ''  umbrella  "  theories  completely  upset. 

Dobson  could  not  resist  laughing  at  me  between  doses. 
Self-confident,  I  braved  the  elements,  and  the  chill  struck 
me  a  little  before  noon,  while  sitting  on  my  horse,  watch- 
ing a  squad  of  our  hoe-hands.  The  sun  would  have  easily 
pulled  the  thermometer  up  to  110°.  First,  I  had  a  sense 
of  heaviness,  then  came  the  chill,  and  there,  in  the  torrid 
heat,  I  felt  colder  and  more  miserable  than  I  had  ever  be- 
fore felt  in  my  life.  Every  bone  in  my  body  was  aching, 
and  my  head  throbbed. 

"Mr.  Harding,  you 's  got  a  chill!"  exclaimed  Uncle 
Wash,  "  you'd  better  git  to  de  quarters  !  " 

It  was  half  a  mile  there,  and  before  I  reached  them  my 
body  became  as  heavy  as  lead.  It  seemed  as  if  invisible 
forces  were  pulling  my  joints  asunder,     I  tumbled  off  my 


MR.  Harding's  sickness,  etc.  293 

horse,  and  went  all  shivering  to  bed,  where  Dobson  soon 
found  mc. 

"  Behold  the  result  of  will !  "  he  said,  as  be  uncovered  my 
head  to  get  a  look. 

"  Make  as  much  fun  of  me  as  you  wish,  General ;  I  de- 
serve it  all  for  going  out  in  a  sun  hot  enough  to  roast  an 
egg.  I  have  defied  fate,  and  here  I  am  si^rawling  on  the 
bed  as  my  recompense.  But  can't  you  get  me  some  cool 
water?"  George  did  the  best  he  could,  but  such  water! 
It  was  tepid  ! 

"Better  hab  some  tea— dat 'ir make  you  sweat,"  said 
Georere. 


'to 


Well,  some  tea,  then— any  thing  would  be  better  than 
such  horrid  water." 

If  it  had  only  been  iced  tea  !  But  that  was  not  possible ; 
cream  and  lump  sugar  would  have  been  the  next  best  thing, 
but  they  were  equally  out  of  the  question.  So  it  was  a  cup 
of  hot  tea,  sweetened  with  common,  brown  sugar— this  to 
quench  a  raging  thirst ! 

Nothing  is  done  by  halves  here,  so  I  had  enough  chill  in 
that  first  paroxysm  to  have  answered  for  a  whole  neighbor- 
hood anywhere  else.  But  if  the  chill  was  severe,  what  of 
the  fever,  with  nothing  but  tepid  water  to  slake  my  thirst, 
and  in  an  atmosphere  so  intensely  hot  as  to  threaten  spon- 
taneous combustion  ?  There  was  thus  a  double  fever  for 
me. 

I  lost  my  mind  for  the  afternoon,  and  Dobson  said  I  did 
enough  farming  in  my  insanity,  if  it  could  have  been  made 
practical  on  the  plantation,  to  have  realized  his  estimate. 
By  nine  o'clock  at  night  the  fever  passed,  reason  resumed 
mastery,  and  what  was  left  of  me,  from  the  day's  siege,  was 
ready  for  Dobson's  quinine  treatment.  Two  days  follow- 
ing I  was  again  in  the  saddle,  this  time  under  an  umbrella ! 
Alas !  how  our  theories  are  shattered  when  put  to  the  test. 
Thereafter  my  predisposition  was  as  strong  for  the  um- 
brella as  had  hitherto  been  my  prejudice  against  it.     But  1 


.f 


294  A   YEAR  OP  WRECK. 

still  held  to  my  "  will  "  theory.  There  was  thus  a  com- 
promise, not  a  surrender. 

Although  performing  my  daily  rounds,  it  soon  became 
evident  that  my  first  chill  had  racked  my  system.  Not- 
withstanding the  shade  of  my  umbrella,  I  wilted  under  the 
intense  heat,  as  had  not  been  my  experience  previously 
when  exposed  to  the  sun.  My  appetite  was  gone.  I  turned 
from  our  bean-soup  with  loathing,  and  yet  there  were  ab- 
solutely no  delicacies  to  be  had.  It  was  beans,  salt  meat 
and  meal — so  I  crowded  it  down  simply  to  sustain  life. 

An  intense  craving  for  milk  came  over  me,  to  gratify 
which,  my  faithful  George  scoured  the  country  for  several 
days.  He  finally  came  back  about  ten. o'clock  in  the  morn- 
ing of  the  third  day,  with  a  bottle  of  it,  but  when  he  poured 
out  a  glass  for  me  to  drink,  I  found  it  sour — and  yet,  he 
said  it  was  fresh  from  the  cows.  Four  miles'  ride,  in  the 
hot  sun,  had  done  the  work  for  it.  We  suffered  most  for 
drinking-water,  and  it  was  becoming  a  serious  question 
whether  we  should  not  be  forced  to  incur  the  expense  of 
ice.  The  cry  of  our  sick  was  for  cold  water,  and  my  own 
thirst,  in  my  recent  attack,  was  fresh  in  my  mind. 

While  still  debating  the  question  of  ice,  I  happened  over 
at  the  gin-house  one  day,  when  prowling  around  under  it, 
I  came  upon  one  of  the  cement  cisterns.  Looking  down 
into  it,  I  could  dimly  see  in  the  darkness  the  glistening  of 
water ;  my  thoughts  were  running  on  cool  water,  and  at 
the  very  moment  I  was  exceedingly  thirsty.  It  occurred 
to  me  that  there,  in  that  cistern,  so  thoroughly  shaded,  I 
might  find  what  I  so  much  desired.  Searching  about  I 
found  an  old  can.  It  was  my  habit  to  carry  a  ball  of  twine 
in  my  pocket,  when  going  to  the  field,  to  mend  broken 
harness,  etc.  This  served  as  a  line,  and  I  at  once  had  a 
can  full  of  this  water  at  my  thirsty  lips.  It  was  all  my 
most  eager  hopes  could  have  fancied  it.  It  was  cool,  de- 
lightfully cool !     I  did  not  stop  in  my  greed  to  examine  it. 


MR.  Harding's  sickness,  etc.  295 

until  I  bad  quenched  my  thirst.  Then  I  looked  into  the 
can  and  found  the  water  to  be  as  clear  as  crystal. 

If  I  bad  been  insured  a  full  realization  of  the  Dobson 
scheme,  I  could  not  have  been  happier  than  I  was  at  that 
moment.  I  thought  of  our  sick  in  the  quarters,  and  how 
grateful  it  would  be  to  their  fevered  lips ;  and  then,  after 
taking  a  third  draught,  I  hurried  off  to  give  them  the  ben- 
efit of  my  discovery. 

"  I  have  found  it !  I  have  found  it!  "  I  cried  to  Dobson, 
as  I  rode  up  to  our  cabin,  and  saw  him  sitting  on  the  gallery 
fighting  the  stripped-legged  mosquitoes. 

Dobson  was  in  his  shirt,  drawers,  and  slippers,  which 
gave  the  mosquitoes  a  fine  range  for  operation.  His  going 
out  upon  the  gallery,  so  clad,  was  a  challenge  to  them, which 
they  had  not  been  slow  to  accept. 

"  Found  what  ?  "  Dobson  asked,  between  slaps,  and  with 
his  usual  deliberation. 

"  Found  a  well  of  cool  water,"  I  replied,  dismounting. 

"No?" 

"  Yes,  indeed,  cool  water  ;  I  have  just  had  my  fill  of  it." 

"Mr.  Harding,  you  are  crazy  j  where  is  this  wonderful 
well?" 

Then  I  told  him  what  1  have  just  related  of  my  dis- 
covery, first  dispatching  George  on  my  horse  with  a  rope 
and  bucket  to  fetch  us  a  supply. 

This  water  was  a  most  grateful  gift  to  us  all,  and  Dob- 
son said  it  was  an  important  adjunct  to  the  speedy  re- 
covery of  our  sick.  "  It  is  also  an  exceedingly  important 
addition  to  our  comfort,  and  will  make  us  more  content 
with  our  lot,"  I  added. 

But  a  disappointment  awaited  us.  We  soon  found  the 
water  in  our  newly-discovered  cistern  to  be  hard,  and, 
upon  examination,  remarked  several  cracks  in  the  cement, 
showing  that  we  were  drinking  "  seejiage  water  !"  Thus 
the  clear,  cool  water,  which  was  so  delightful  to  us,  was, 
after   all,   unwholesome,   and   must  be   abandoned.     The 


296  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

morning  after  this  unpleasant  discovery,  George  filled  our 
glasses  at  breakfast  with  a  muddy-looking  liquid. 

"  Where  on  earth  did  you  get  this  water  ?"  I  asked. 

''  Out  ob  de  Massij),  sah." 

I  took  a  swallow  of  it,  and  found  it  pleasantly  cool. 

"  Why,  I  did  n't  know  the  Mississippi  river  water  was 
cool  like  this,"  I  said,  looking  at  George. 

"  Dat  come  from  de  bottom  ob  de  ribber,  sah,"  said  George, 
roguishly. 

"  Out  of  the  bottom  of  the  river — how  is  that?" 

"  I  jes  went  down  to  the  ribber,  last  night,  Avid  a  jug, 
an'  den  sink  de  jug  in  de  bottom  ob  de  ribber  all  night, 
an'  lef  it  da',  an'  this  is  the  'suit." 

"George,  you're  a  noble  boy — you  have  found  a  way 
to  give  us  cool,  wholesome  drinking  water." 

"  Tank  you  sah,"  said  George,  grinning  from  ear  to  ear, 
"  I 's  glad  you  's  pleased." 

"  Yes,  George,  it  is  a  fine  service  you  have  done  us," 
Dobson  said,  after  testing  the  water  ;  "  but  instead  of  filling 
your  jug  with  the  muddy  river  water,  fill  it  with  our 
clear  rain  water,  and  cool  that  off"." 

•'  Certainly,  sah." 

So  we  had  moderately  cool  drinking  water  after  this, 
but  it  occasionally  ha2:ipened  that  we  sent  over  to  the  gin- 
bouse  for  a  bucketful  of  that  delightfully  cool  water,  even 
though  it  was  "  seepage  "  and  unwholesome. 


NEGRO   CnURCHES.  297 


CHAPTER  LV. 

NEGRO    CHURCHES. 

Stimulated,  doubtless,  by  the  weekly  funeral  services, 
there  sprang  up  in  our  plantation-quarters,  frequent  re- 
ligious meetings,  running  through  the  evenings  of  the 
week,  bearing  a  slight  resemblance  to  prayer-meetings, 
and  culminating  on  Sunday  with  what  was  intended  to  be 
a  grand  preaching  exercise.  The  prayer-meetings  were 
usually  plantation  affairs,  while  the  Sunday  service  em- 
braced the  neighborhood. 

The  "  preachers  "  were  generally  of  home  talent— being 
the  plantation  laborers  ;  and  our  own  force  soon  developed 
a  iDrolific  crop.  To  their  shame,  be  it  said,  they  were  not 
always,  nor  generally,  our  most  reliable  laborers.  Several 
of  these  preachers  had  certificates,  as  crude  as  were  their 
sermons,  from  some  one  signing  himself  as  so-and-so, 
'•bishop,"  or  "presiding  elder,"  indicating  that  there  was 
a  religious  organization  among  the  black  people  of  the 
South,  with  headquarters  at  Yicksburg,  New  Orleans,  and 
elsewhere.  It  was  doubtless  the  result  of  the  missionary 
work  under  the  wing  of  our  army. 

While  it  was  at  once  apparent  that  this  church  wor- 
ship was  of  the  crudest  sort,  it  was  yet  religion  to  the 
black  people,  so  to  encourage  it  we  set  apart  a  cabin  as 
a  church,  where  our  own  people  and  those  from  other 
plantations,  so  inclined,  could  assemble  at  their  pleasure  to 
go  through  exercises  Avhich,  with  more  civilized  people, 
would  almost  be  termed  blasphemous. 

These  meetings  had  the  features  of  an  Indian  war  dance. 
Seeing  them  for  the  first  time  the  exclamation  would  be, 
"What  sacrilege !  "—and  yet,  upon  closer  observation,  it 
1:3* 


298  A    YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

was  to  be  seen  that  there  was  a  vein  of  religion  running 
through  the  service  which  education,  experience,  and  time 
would  soften  and  sober  into  proper  church  worship.  It 
was  scarcely  less  crude  than  our  attempt  to  work  the  ne- 
groes as  free  laborers,  or  than  their  notions  of  their  duties 
and  responsibilities  as  free  citizens.  It  was  the  ABC 
period  that  we  were  passing  through,  viewed  in  whatever 
aspect. 

The  following  specimens,  taken  at  the  time  from  our 
plantation  meetings,  will  give  the  reader  an  idea  of  their 
character.  Here  is  a  sermon,  with  the  interruptions  just 
as  they  occurred : 

'''  Brethering,  I  will  make  onto  you  a  few  scatterin' 
'marks  dis  mornin'  " — [voice  from  the  congregation,  "Oh, 
3^e8,"J — "  'bout  how  de  Lo'd  came  into  dis  wo'ld  fur  to  seek 
an'  fin'  dat  w'at  wus  los'  " — [another  voice,  '•  Yes,brudder"J 
— "  an'  how  I  wa'  comin'  long  de  ro'ds  dis  mornin' " — 
— ['^  True,  Lo'd  "] — "  dah  wur  two  sinnahs  sittin'  in  de  do' 
ob  de  house" — [''Yes,  Lo'd,  dat 's  so  " — groan] — "dey 
wur  a  talkin'  'bout  de  bressed  Lo'd" — ["  Yes,  Jesus  "] — 
dat  de  devine  speret  come  to  dera  " — [-•  Dat 's  all  so,  brud- 
der,"] — "in  dere  dreams  by  night  "—["  Yes,  Lo'd  "]— (at 
this  stage  the  negro  women  became  so  excited  that  they 
commenced  stamping  their  feet,  accompanied  by  a  swaying 
of  their  bodies  and  a  humming  sound  proceeding  from  their 
closed  lips  ;  this  was  continued  during  most  of  the  service, 
only  increasing  as  the  excitement  increased) — ■•  an'  revealed 
onto  dem" — ["  Bres  me,  Lo"d,"] — "  dat  dey  would  be  tree 
da'kdays  " — ["  Lo'd,  sabe  my  soul "] — "  when  all  dat  did  n't 
sarve  de  Lo'd  would  be  dammed  to  die  " — ["  Lo'd,  deliber 
me"]. — "He  will  smite  dem"  [striking  the  desk  with  his 
fist]  "to  de  yearth.  Sinnahs,  come,  do  come  an'  be  saved, 
or  you'll  be  dammed." 

Here  an  awful  scream  was  heard,  followed  by  a  shout 
from  a  "  sister,"  who  had  been  taken  with  what  they  term 
the  "  power."     "I  lubs  de  Lo'd,"  she  cried;  "oh,  Jesus, 


NEGRO    CnURCUES.  299 

sabo  me !  oh !  oh  !  oh ! "  and  so  on  for  sometime,  smitinc: 
the  air  with  her  fists — during  which  time  she  was  held  up 
by  two  "sisters,"  until  overcome  by  excitement  she  fell 
back  in  their  arms  exhausted. 

A  brother  sprang  up  and  gave  out  a  line,  and  the  excite- 
ment increased  as  they  all  sang,  the  brothers  one  line,  the 
sisters  the  next : 

Broihers.     "  I  seed  one  upon  a  tree." 

Sisters.     "  Gone  to  meet  my  sistahs  in  de  mornin'." 

Broihers.     "  I  seed  him  an'  he  seed  me." 

Sisters.    "  Gone  to  meet  my  sistahs  in  de  mornin'." 

Brothers.     "  I  lub  him  as  I  see  him  dere." 

Sisters.     "  Gone  to  meet  my  sistahs  in  de  mornin'." 

Brother's.     ''  Wid  his  pretty  face  an'  shiney  ha'r." 

Siste7's.     "  Gone  to  meet,"  etc. 

While  the  singing  proceeded  the  preacher  walked  up  and 
down  the  platform,  greatly  excited. 

"  Come,  oh,  you  sinnahs,  to  de  Lo'd,"  he  cried. 

"  I's  come,"  some  one  screamed  in  reply. 

"He  opens  his  pow'ful  arras  to  you ;  kin  you  refuse?" 
yelled  out  the  preacher. 

"  I's  jumped  squar'  into  dem,"  an  excited  sister  replies, 
with  a  great  leap. 

This  was  the  climax.  The  whole  church  was  in  an  up- 
roar— some  shouting,  some  exhorting,  others  giving  out 
hymns.  There  were  three  of  what  they  called  their 
"  deckons  "  (deacons)  standing  under  the  pul2)it — each 
lining  off  hymns  at  the  same  time — and  so  absorbed  were 
they  that  they  didn't  appear  to  notice  that  no  one  joined 
them  in  their  singing.  In  the  meantime  what  they  termed 
the  "sinnahs  "  were  grouped  in  the  rear  of  the  church,  or 
just  outside  the  door.  Those  on  the  inside  indulged  in 
more  or  less  laughter  and  loud  talk,  while  those  on  the 
outside  were  so  noisy  as  to  seriously  annoy  the  worshipers. 
An  officer  was  stationed  at  the  door  to  enforce  quiet ;  when 
the  outsiders  would  become  especially  boisterous,  he  would 


300  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

eing  out  to  them  :  "  De  Lo'd  won't  Bress  you — beah  me  !  " 
The  sinners  would  shout  in  reply,  "  Yes,  brudder,  dat  's  so." 
At  which  the  door-keeper  would  roll  his  eyes  and  groan, 
only  to  reappear  and  to  be  freshly  shocked  at  each  fresh 
outbreak. 

There  was  another  officer  moving  around  inside,  who 
told  me  his  duty  was,  "  To  keep  down  de  sinnahs  inside." 
He,  more  discreet  than  the  one  who  looked  after  the  out- 
siders with  such  poor  results,  was  provided  with  a  largo 
club,  knotty  at  the  end,  with  which  he  rapped  the  noisy 
ones  over  the  shins  into  silence.  "  You  '11  be  pow'ful  burnt 
some  day — better  listen  to  de  preacher  an'  be  sabed,"  he 
would  frequently  add.  This  officer  wore  red  stripes  down 
the  legs  of  his  pantaloons,  and  strutted  around  like  a  pea- 
cock. 

There  was  still  another  officer,  whose  duty  was  to  water 
the  congregation  at  stated  intervals.  For  this  purpose  a 
gourd  and  bucket  were  furnished,  and  the  water  was  passed 
around  from  seat  to  seat. 

On  one  occasion  a  f)reacher  came  up  from  New  Orleans, 
which  was  the  signal  for  an  immense  Sunday  attendance — 
the  grape-vine  telegraph  being  put  to  work  to  "  n orate  " 
his  arrival.  He  was  a  wise-looking  negro,  and  could  read 
hesitatingly.  Announcing  the  text  he  called  upon  "  Deckon 
'Nias  "  to  respond  to  it,  after  which  came  "  Deckon  Eoss." 
The  latter  was  very  tedious  in  his  remarks,  which  occupied 
an  hour — failing  to  rouse  the  congregation  in  the  least. 
The  New  Orleans  minister  then  rose  to  close  the  sermon. 
He  said : 

"De  'marks  ob  Brudder  'Nias  were  berry  good.  Dey 
teched  de  pint  'zackly — I  highly  'proves  ob  dera.  It  is  jis 
de  kind  ob  preachin'  dat'll  make  de  sinnahs  groan  and  de 
Christians  shout.  All  you  dat  is  'appy  wid  de  Lord  will 
'joice  at  de  sound  ob  his  words,  an'  de  mis'able  sinnahs  '11 
shake  when  dey  hears  de  awful  sound.  Brudder  Eoss  war 
sleepy  in  his  'marks — not  fo'cible,  like  Brudder  'Nias,"  (at 


NEGRO    CIIURCUES.  301 

which  compliment ''  Brudder  'Nias"  was  heard  to  clear  his 
throat — while  "Brudder  Eoss  "  looked  Ycry  much  crest- 
fiillen).     "  Brudder  Eoss  had  better  read  his  Bible  mo'." 

Then  '^  Beckon  Gus  "  rose  and  said:  "Let  us  sing." 
Pointing  his  long,  bony  fingers  out  toward  the  door,  where 
the  "  sinnahs"  were  huddled,  he  started  up,  and  was  joined 
by  the  congregation  : 

"  You  see  dem  chil'ens,  yonder? 
You  tink  dey  doin'  well ; 
But  when  you  comes  to  fin'  out, 
ChiFens,  dey  's  liangin'  ober  hell. 

Chorus.—"  Dey 's  hangin'  ober  hell, 

Dey 's  hangin'  ober  hell, 
But  when  you  comes  to  fin'  out, 
Chil'ens,  dey's  hangin'  ober  hell." 

While  they  were  yet  singing,  thunder  was  heard,  where- 
upon some  of  the  sisters  from  adjoining  plantations  pro- 
ceeded to  say  good-bye  to  the  Hebron  sisters.  This  move- 
ment^bade  fair  to  close  the  meeting,  and  it  seemed  to  worry 
the  Xew  Orleans  preacher.     He  called  out : 

"  Sistahs,  thunder  was  made  by  de  Lo'd  you  worships,  an' 
heah  you  is  runnin'  way  from  it— be  not  afraid ;  ef  your 
faith  is  in  God,  stay."— But  it  was  a  stampede,  and  the 
meeting  ended  without  any  attempt  at  a  doxology. 

At  another  time,  in  the  midst  of  a  great  excitement, 
"  Sister  Eeah"  undertook  the  conversion  of  "Aaron,"  who 
had  the  reputation  of  being  a  great  sinner.  She  got  her 
arms  around  his  neck,  and  commenced  exhorting. 

"  O,  Brudder  Aaron,  come  to  de  Lo'd,"— kissing  him,— 
"be  converted,"— another  kiss;  "come  into  delblds'ob 
Jesus— he  will  bress  you,"— kisses. 

"  Yes,  sistah." 

"  You  wus  made  fo'  de  Lo'd,  an'  not  fo'  de  debih" 
"  Bat's  so,  my  sistah." 


302  »         A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

"  Erudder  Aaron,  pray." 

"  I  can't,  Sistah  Eeah." 

''Try." 

"Ihab  tried." 

Then  "  Sister  Eeah  "  rushed  up  to  the  pulpit,  and  jumping 
up  and  down,  clapping  her  hands,  she  exclaimed  :  "  Jesus, 
come  to  Brudder  Aaron  ;  make  him  one  ob  de  flock,"  and 
then  the  "  i:)Ower  "  struck  her,  and  she  was  seized  by  two 
"  sisters," — who  held  her  down — she  all  the  time  throwing 
out  her  arms  wildly,  beseeching  for  "  Brudder  Aaron,"  un- 
til she  became  speechless,  and  was  carried  off  in  a  swoon. 
Whereupon  one  of  the  deacons  started  up  : 

"  Did  n'  your  conscience  nebber  tell  you, 
Did  n'  your  conscience  nebber  tell  you, 
Did  n'  your  conscience  nebber  tell  you, 
To  go  in  de  valley  an'  pray  ?  "  . 

A  "  sister  "  answered  back : 

"  Oh,  no,  I  aint  ashamed, 
Oh,  no,  I  aint  ashamed, 
Oh,  no,  I  aint  ashamed, 
To  go  in  de  valley  an'  pray." 

I  asked  Aunt  Clara  (one  of  the  most  active  of  the  "  sis- 
ters ")  "what  is  the  denomination  of  your  church  ?  " 

She  looked  at  me  with  an  expression  of  pity  for  my 
ignorance,  heaved  a  sigh,  and  answered  : 

"  We's  de  ha'd-headed  Baptis',  chile ;  yes,  we's  ha'd  fo' 
de  Lo'd." 

One  day  I  was  standing  in  the  church  door,  when  all  of 
a  sudden  the  excitement  sprang  np — some  shouting,  some 
singing,  some  praying.  The  outburst  was  unexpected  to 
me,  and  seemed  ludicrous,  and  I  smiled,  when  Clara,  who,  it 
seems,  had  been  watching  me  closely,  detected  me  smiling. 
She  came  over  to  me  at  once. 

''  In  de  day  ob  judgment,  when  Gabriel  blows  his  mighty 


NEGRO    CnURCHES.  303 

ho'n,  calliii'  both  de  jest  and  de  onjcst  to  'dcmption,  den 

you'll  want  what  you  is  now  laughin'  at — heah  me!  " 
"  What  do  you  mean,  Aunt  Clara  ?" 
I  means  all  dis  shoutin'  an'  singin'.     It'll  take  it  all  to 

rush  you  into  hcbbcn." 

"  I  wont  smile  any  more  then,  Clara." 

•'Well,  honey,  I  hopes  you'll  'member  dat  promise." 

The  following  hymn,  and  what  was  called  the  "  doxol- 

lum,"  closed  this  meeting  : 

Brothers.     "When  Israel  was  in  Egyp's  land — " 

Sisiers.     "  Let  my  people  go." 

Brothers.     "  So  hard  oppressed  they  could  n't  stand — " 

Sisters.     "  Let  my  people  go." 

Chorics.     "  Then  go  down,  Moses, 

Away  down  to  Egyp's  land  ; 

Tell  Xing  Pharaoh 

To  let  my  people  go," 

They  occasionally  had  what  they  called  "  'zamination 
meetins  " — devoted  to  the  giving  of  their  experiences.  "  Br. 
'Lias  "  gave  his  as  follows  :  "  Brudders  an'  sistahs,  when  I 
was  alayin'  in  my  bed  by  night  de  speret  ob  de  Lo'd  came, 
an'  stannin  by  my  bed-side  I  seed  a  dream.  On  de  udder  side 
ob  Jording  dah  was  de  angel  ob  de  Lo'd,  and  he  beckoned 
to  me.  Says  he,  '  Come,  come,  oh,  come,  'Lias,  come,'  an' 
my  head  was  all  bedizzy  like,  and  I  begin  to  tremble  ;  an' 
I  kep'  on  lookin'  dah,  'til  de  scene  was  broked  into,  an'  on 
his  fiery  throne  sat  de  Lo'd,  and  he  says,  '  Come,  come,  oh, 
come,  'Lias,  an'  be  one  of  my  redempted  sperets  ;'  an'  den  I 
begin  to  beliebc  " — ["  Ugh,"  one  exclaimed]. — " Do  Lo'd  was 
too  strong " — ["He  is  so,"  exclaimed  another] — "  an'  de  deb- 
bil  begin  to  go  out  ob  me  " — ["  Did  so"] — "  an'  de  Lo'd 
crawled  in,  an'  oh,  I  was  so  happy  wid  de  Lo'd  " — ["  I 
knows  it  "]. — Befo'  I  was  de  awfullest  sinnah  eber  was,  but 
now,  by  de  grace  ob  de  Lo'd,  I 's  redempted  new — bo'n 
nfrm — hab  de  speret  in   me,  an'  is  hai:>py."     Then  ''  Br. 


304  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

'Lias  "  received  the  congratuLitions  of  the  congregation 
— each  one  shaking  his  hand. 

A  white  face  was  a  restraint  to  them.  I  have  looked  in 
upon  them  when  their  service  was  at  fever-heat — the 
preacher  fairly  raving  with  excitement,  the  congregation 
singing,  shouting,  praying,  dancing ;  when  the  preacher 
would  happen  to  glance  toward  the  door  and  espy  me,  it 
would  cool  him  instantly,  and  in  the  shortest  space  the 
church  would  be  quiet — all  life  gone  out  of  it. 

The  Sabbath -school,  under  my  management,  was  a  fail- 
ure. It  was  too  tame  an  affair  to  suit  their  fiery  feelings. 
Evidently  our  sober  Sabbath-school  service  was  quite  as 
strange  to  them  as  was  their  religious  service  to  me.  It 
was  not  "  church  "  to  them  unless  they  could  "  wallow  wid 
Jesus,"  unobserved  by  a  white  face.  Even  the  presence  of 
the  Xew  Orleans  preacher,  with  his  shining  black  suit, 
well-combed  hair,  reading  the  Bible,  was  a  restraint,  and 
was  the  reason  why  '■  Br.  Boss  "  did  not  wake  the  church 
up,  as  was  his  wont.  What  they  luxui'iated  in  was  their 
own  home  talent. 

ISTothing  excited  the  negroes  so  much  in  their  meetings 
as  when  their  speakers  would  weave  in  reminiscences  of 
their  bondage.  There  was  one  of  their  number — Uncle 
Harrison,  as  we  called  him — who  used  to  delight  in  this, 
and  who  was  a  man  of  considerable  force.  The  following 
is  one  of  his  efforts  : 

"  De  wages  ob  sin  is  death.  Dat  's  God's  saying.  Many 
ob  you  hab  felt  dat  death  's  coming-on  out  on  de  old  plan- 
tation. When  you  felt  it  coming  on  den  you  wanted  to  go 
to  Christ.  But  de  driver's  cry  was  heard,  '  Gro  to  work.' 
But  you  did  n't  care  for  him,  nor  de  whip,  nor  de  fetters, 
ef  de  hebbenly  life  could  only  come  into  your  soul.  In 
some  dark  place  you  would  go  an'd  pray — an'  de  darker 
de  better — ef  de  Lord  would  come  just  dat  once ;  and 
when  he  come  you  run  to  de  cotton-field  and  worked  all 
day,  and  did  n't  care  for  de  lashes  on  de  bare  back  which 


NEGRO    CnURCHES.  305 

you  received  because  you  stayed  so  long  in  prayer.  What 
joy  den  followed  !  '  Take  all  I  bab,'  you  said,  '  but  give 
me  dis  new  life.'  It  was  dis  dat  propped  you  up  in  dem 
black  days  ob  bondage.  When  de  hebbenly  gift  was  yours 
you  fear'd  no  harm.  De  old  master  might  swear,  and  de 
old  driver  might  flog — but  dere  was  peace  and  joy 
within." 

As  may  be  imagined  this  stirred  up  his  congregation 
wonderfully.  He  was  frequently  interrupted  by  devout 
exclamations,  shouting,  and  bursts  of  religious  frenzv 
from  his  hearers.  So  much  so,  that  it  was  with  difficulty  I 
could  take  down  his  words  as  I  stood  concealed  under  the 
window. 

Here  is  a  sermon  which  I  noted  down  upon  another  oc- 
casion : 

"  Good  many  times  we  spent  de  long  night  in  praar,  an' 
as  de  little  stars  stoj^ped  dar  twinkle,  and  de  day-break 
come,  we  crep'  into  de  fiel'  to  work  all  day  wid  de  plow  and 
de  hoe,  an'  eat  de  old  bacon  an'  corn.  But  de  soul  had  rest, 
an'  libbed  on  honey  an'  de  honey-comb.  But,  God  bress 
you,  chill'en,  dem  days  am  passed  an'  gone  ;  de  God  ob 
Moses  hab  taken  off  de  fetters,  and  soul  an'  body  am  free. 
I  hab  walked  dis  road  myself  wid  dese  yer  feet,  and  at  de 
broke  ob  day  heard  de  whip  crack,  de  bell  ring,  an'  de 
driver's  call,  an'  when  I  rolled  out  ob  my  little  crib  felt 
dat  I  would  die  dat  day.  But  Jesus  talked  wid  me,  an' 
said,  '  Go  out  once  mo',  an'  I  will  be  wid  you.'  " 

Here  is  another  specimen  : 

"De  debil  toke  President  Linkum  up  into  a  high 
mountain,  an'  showed  him  all  the  powers  he  would  gib 
him  ef  he  'de  on'y  fall  down  an'  worship  him.  But  de 
kind  ole  man,  de  sabior  ob  dis  people,  on'y  winked  at  de 
tempter,  an'  said,  '  I  can  't  see  it.'  But  when  de  debil  kep' 
on  a-temptin',  an'  'gan  to  quote  de  texes  ob  de  constution 
ober  to  mislead  him,  den  de  President  riz  up  full  height,  an' 


306  A   TEAR   OF   WRECK. 

put  him-  fru  de  manuel :  '  Tree  x^aces  to  de  raar.     Eight 
'bout  face — march/  an'  de  debil  went  on  de  double-quick." 


CHAPTEE  LYI. 

COMFORTS    AND    DISCOMFORTS. 

My  "  will  "  theory  was  shortly  to  be  put  to  a  severe  test. 
The  seventh  day  after  my  first  chill  I  took  thirty  grains  of 
quinine,  and  so  escaped  the  second  paroxysm.  Then,  ab- 
sorbed with  my  duties,  I  grew  careless,  and  when  the  four- 
teen days  came  around,  neglected  the  medicine,  which  re- 
sulted in  my  having  the  second  chill — both  chill  and  fever 
being  more  protracted  than  the  first ;  the  latter  so  much 
so  that  I  could  not  get  myself  sufficiently  under  the  influ- 
ence of  quinine  to  prevent  my  chill  coming  on  again  the 
next  day.  During  both  days  I  vomited  profusely;  the 
heat  seemed  excessive  ;  my  diet  was  the  rudest — if,  indeed, 
any  thing  would  have  tempted  me — and  I  seemed  rapidly 
approaching  the  state  of  a  confirmed  invalid. 

The  only  thing  I  actually  enjoyed  was  George's  jug  of 
cooled  rain-water.  He  was  a  willing  soul,  devotedly  at- 
tached to  me,  and  all  hours  of  the  day  and  night  saw  him 
hastening  to  and  from  the  river,  so  as  to  keep  me  always 
supplied  with  the  freshest  draughts  of  water.  I  had  only 
to  look  into  a  glass  to  see  that  I  was  but  the  ghost  of  my 
former  self  What  I  had  boasted  of  to  Dobson  as  being 
but  "  healthy  tan,"  was  a  good  deal  more  than  skin-deep 
— it  was,  in  fact,  the  result  of  a  system  gorged  with  bile, 
and  there  was  really  but  very  little  tan  about  it.  Dobson 
was  worried  at  my  condition. 

"  There  is  no  special  danger  of  fatal  results,"  he  said. 
"  The  fear  is  that  your  chills  will  become  chronic.  Satur- 
ated, as  your  system  now  is,  with  malaria,  any  trifling  ex- 


COMFORTS    AND   DISCOMFORTS.  307 

posure,  such  as  sitting  in  a  draught,  night  air,  the  heat  of 
the  sun,  is  liable  to  throw  you  into  a  chill.  Each  addi- 
tional chill  renders  you  still  more  liable  to  others.  By-and- 
by  quinine  will  lose  its  effect,  after  which  the  remedies  are 
arsenic,  frost,  a  change  of  climate,  and,  above  all,  time." 

"  Ah,  General,  that  is  the  dark  side  of  the  picture.  The 
bright  side  is — I  will  come  out  stronger  on  the  '  will,'  and 
BO  pull  through  ;  of  course,  in  the  meantime  taking  good 
care  of  myself  With  a  condition  favorable  to  chills,  I  maj^ 
occasionally  have  one,  now  that  they  have  got  a  start  with 
me,  but  I  am  bound  they  shall  be  few  and  far  between." 

"  Well,  there  is  nothing  like  being  hopeful,  Mr.  Harding 
— which  you  certainly  are.  You  may  not  have  another 
chill,  but  you  are  likely  to  have  many — 1  hope  for  the 
former  case,  but  fear  the  latter." 

If  some  features  of  the  weather  were  not  conducive  to 
health,  they  were  to  comfort.  Notwithstanding  the  heat 
of  the  day,  the  nights  were  always  cool.  This  was  said  to 
be  the  result  of  breezes  from  off  the  G-ulf  of  Mexico — 
though,  indeed,  these  breezes  fortunately  were  not  confined 
to  the  season  of  night ;  except  for  an  hour  or  so  before  sun- 
rise until  seven  in  the  morning,  and  again  for  about  the 
same  time  before  and  after  sun-set,  they  were  unceasing. 
These  continuous  breezes  served  to  break  the  rays  of  the 
sun,  thus  greatly  mitigating  their  force.  I  have  said  these 
breezes  were  unceasing  except  during  the  hours  stated  ; 
and  this  was  a  wise  dispensation  of  Providence,  as  but  for 
them,  while  people  might  exist  here,  it  would  be  impossi- 
ble to  endure  the  labor  necessary  to  produce  a  crop — not 
that  there  was  such  a  high  degree  of  heat;  it  was  the  long 
continuance  of  the  heated  term,  from  May  until  October, 
which  was  said  to  be  so  enervating.  During  the  hottest 
portion  of  the  season  I  noted  the  thermometer  every  day 
for  a  period  of  three  weeks,  and  at  meridian  it  ranged  from 
88°  to  90° — while  at  nine  o'clock  in  the  evening  of  the 
the  same  days  it  was  down  to  75°  and  70°.     At  the  same 


308  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

period  the  thermometer  was  ranging  in  Cincinnati  from 
95°  to  98°,  with  intensely  hot  nights.  Thus,  while  our 
friends  in  the  Korth  were  panting  for  a  breath  of  cool 
night  air,  we  slept  under  about  the  same  coverings  we  had 
found  necessary  before  the  hot  weather  set  in.  Protected 
from  mosquitoes  and  all  other  insects  under  our  bars,  with 
such  a  temperature  as  I  have  described,  after  the  labors  and 
vexations  of  the  day — and  when  not  disturbed  by  our  sick 
— our  sleep  was  sweet,  and  we  woke  in  the  morning 
thoroughly  refreshed.  For  comfort  and  health  we  changed 
our  clothes  three  times  each  day  :  in  the  early  morning 
wearing  woolen,  in  the  heat  of  the  day  as  little  clothing  as 
possible,  and  in  the  evening  again  woolen.  The  peculiarity 
of  the  heat  was  that  it  was  not  depressing — there  was  no 
gasping  for  breath.  It  was  a  heat  that  produced  profuse 
perspiration  while  sitting  in  one's  room  in  the  shade. 
Even  with  the  most  violent  exercise,  during  the  hottest 
weather  in  the  North,  one  has  often  a  dry  skin.  I  well  re- 
membered the  suffocating  sensations  of  that  pent-up  heat. 
Here,  without  an  effort,  the  perspiration  would  ooze  from 
every  pore  in  my  body,  setting  me  all  in  a  glow. 

With  doors  and  windows  wide  open,  as  was  the  custom, 
the  incessant  breezes  swept  through  our  cabin,  making 
weights  necessary  to  prevent  our  papers  from  being  blown 
about.  Never  was  there  the  slightest  need  to  go  in  search 
of  a  breeze  ;  out  of  doors  one  was  always  fanning  you. 
Look  across  the  fields,  and  there  would  be  the  ceaseless 
flutter  of  leaf  on  tree  and  bush  and  cotton-stalk  ;  open  a 
window  or  door,  and  there  it  was  on  the  outside,  ready  to 
enter — in  the  middle  of  the  day  with  a  more  or  less  heated 
breath,  at  night  deliciously  cool. 

Before  morning  the  breeze  came  laden  with  moisture — 
the  falling  dew— amounting  almost  to  a  slight  shower : 
enough,  at  any  rate,  to  dampen  the  dust  in  the  road,  and 
cause  vegetation  to  glisten  with  drops  of  water,  as  if  it 
had  been  sprinkled  with  a  watering-pot,  and  to  look  up 


COMFORTS   AND   DISCOMFORTS.  309 

full  of  renewed  life.  This  served  to  explain  why  vegeta- 
tion could  exist,  as  it  frequently  had  to  for  a  considerable 
time  here,  without  a  drop  of  rain.  Each  nightly  dew-fall 
was  itself  a  shower.  Cotton,  I  may  here  remark,  does  not 
draw  its  moisture  in  this  way — its  long  straight  tap-root 
burrowing  into  the  ground  is  the  tube  through  which  it 
comes  ;  and  yet  even  cotton — this  sun-plant,  as  it  has  been 
called — plainly  derived  new  vigor  from  this  nightly  bath, 
which  gave  it  courage  and  strength  to  look  the  sun  square 
in  the  face  from  its  risinc;  to  its  settins:. 

There  was  then,  as  I  have  noted,  a  daily  change  in  the 
thermometer  from  90°  at  noon  to  70°  at  midnig-ht — a 
change  almost  as  regular  as  clock-work.  It  was  thus  a  steam- 
bath,  followed  by  its  opposite.  Great  care  was  necessary 
to  save  the  system  from  the  shock  incident  to  such  changes  ; 
hence  the  woolen  clothing,  mornings  and  evenings,  with  fire 
on  the  hearth,  and  the  absence  of  clothes  during  the  heat 
of  the  day.  Such  extremes  could  not  be  wholesome,  and 
were  doubtless  a  fruitful  cause  of  sickness. 

Laying  aside  all  prejudice,  we  had  to  acknowledge  that, 
with  proper  surroundings,  this  was  not  the  most  unpleasant 
country  in  the  world.  Our  experience  of  it  was  not  a  fair 
test.  Here  we  were  in  the  overseer's  cabin,  or  rather  in  a 
small  section  of  it — because  the  cabin  was  at  once  store- 
room, hospital,  office,  and  living-room.  AYe  had  not  a  cow 
to  give  us  milk  ;  no  garden  ;  no  poultry ;  no  sheep  from 
which  we  could  draw  an  occasional  mutton  or  spring  lamb  ; 
no  calves  for  veal — only  some  staggering,  scrawny  Texas 
beeves ;  nothing  else  to  eat  but  the  provisions  of  our 
store-room,  Avhich  had  traveled  all  the  way  from  Cincin- 
nati. 

What  sort  of  farming  was  this  of  ours,  any  how  ?  Of 
course  our  cabin  discomforts  were  unavoidable,  until  we 
could  build  a  house  to  live  in.  True,  we  had  made  an  ef- 
fort toward  a  garden,  but  that  it  was  a  complete  failure 
Avas  not  for  the  reason  that  all  kinds  of  garden  vegetables 


310  A    YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

did  not  grow  luxuriously  here,  under  ordinary  circum- 
stances, but  because  we  had  taken  a  little  piece  from  our 
great  weed-2)atch  of  a  plantation,  and,  with  no  more  prep- 
aration than  should  have  been  given  to  ground  that  was 
under  a  high  state  of  cultivation,  had  expected  a  good 
garden. 

Sheej)  and  milch  cows  could  be  had  for  the  money  in 
either  the  Cincinnati  or  St.  Louis  markets.  Every  steam- 
boat from  the  up-country — all  of  them  jDassing  our  door, 
of  course — brought  down  coops  upon  coops  of  poultry. 
Cows  and  sheep  and  poultry  throve  here — as  what  did  not  ? 
But  all  these  required  money  for  their  purchase,  with  care 
and  proper  treatment  afterward. 

Our  bayous  were  full  of  turtles — soft-shells,  many  of 
them,  too.  There  they  lay  in  great  numbers,  all  day  long, 
sunning  themselves  on  the  logs.  There  was  a  very  simple 
way  to  catch  them.  Take  a  shoe-box,  bore  a  hole  in  each 
upper  corner  of  one  side;  run  a  rope  through  each  hole  ; 
tie  stones — or  rather  old  iron  or  bricks,  since  we  have  no 
stones — to  the  ends  of  the  rope  ;  put  weights  enough  in 
the  box  to  sink  it,  and  then  sink  it  on  the  outer  side  of  a 
log  on  which  the  turtles  congregate  ;  throw  the  ropes, 
with  the  weights  attached,  over  the  side  of  the  log  towards 
you — thus  the  box  is  held  close  up  to  the  log,  under  the 
water,  and  of  course  invisible.  Then  go  away  and  let  the 
turtles  come  up  on  the  log  to  sun  themselves — after 
which  all  you  have  to  do  is  to  pass  along  the  banks  of  the 
bayou,  scare  the  turtles,  and  they  droj:)  off  the  log  on  the 
opposite  side  into  your  box,  and  you  have  them  caged — 
half  a  dozen  at  a  time.  In  this  way  we  might  have  had 
turtle-soup  to  alternate  with  the  bean-soup  of  which  we 
were  so  tired,  to  say  nothing  of  turtle-steak.  The  woods, 
moreover,  were  full  of  game,  to  be  had  for  the  hunting. 

Thus  it  was  not  because  the  soil  would  not  produce,  or 
that  the  climate  was  not  congenial,  that  we  were  suffering 
for  lack  of  fresh  vegetables  and  meats  ;  and  it  was  not  the 


COMFORTS   AND   DISCOMFORTS.  311 

fault  of  the  country  itself,  but  rather  the  fault  of  its  con- 
dition and  of  our  own  shortcomings. 

The  fact  is,  all  our  energies  were  bent  in  the  direction 
of  cotton.  We  had  started  under  great  disadvantages,  the 
principal  of  which  was  our  own  ignorance  of  the  business  ; 
we  had  encountered  obstacles  at  every  turn ;  our  cotton 
was  still  in  the  grass— our  work  was  driving  us  ;  we  had 
not  a  moment  of  time  to  secure  such  of  the  creature  com- 
forts as  were  within  our  grasp.  To  catch  up  with  our 
work  was  our  all-absorbing  struggle— to  make  our  grand 
weed-patch  a  productive  cotton  plantation  in  the  year  1860 
was  our  constant  aim. 

With  a  comfortable  house  on  the  Hebron  plantation,  hav- 
ing broad  galleries  surrounding  it  to  catch  the  breezes,  and 
upon  w^iich  to  swing  a  hammock  ;  with  garden  and  poultry, 
with  wild  game,  and  such  other  comforts  as  the  country  was 
capable  of  i)roducing  or  supporting ;  with  our  continuous 
breezes  and  cool  nights,  bringing  gloriously  refreshing 
sleep  ;— with  all  these,  we  used  to  say  that  we  thought  we 
should  not  greatly  mind  the  insects,  or  the  miasma,  or  our 
inhospitable  surroundings;  and  with  a  good  cotton  pros- 
pect in  view,  our  feelings  toward  the  country  would  be  all 
that  we  had  fondly  imagined  they  should  be. 

While  on  the  subject  of  comforts  and  discomforts  I  will 
mention  that  one  of  the  former,  after  a  day  of  heat  and  its 
accompanying  perspiration,  was  a  bath,  with  water  from 
our  cistern.  The  attendant  discomfort  was  the  mosquitoes, 
swarming  at  the  bed-time  hour  —  the  time  for  the  bath. 
George  would  first  bring  in  the  bath-tub,  with  its  water. 
In  order  to  do  this,  he  had  to  move  some  of  our  chairs 
temporarily  out  upon  the  gallery,  and  then,  that  I  might 
take  my  bath  in  any  sort  of  peace,  he  had  to  fight  away  the 
hungry  mosquitoes  with  a  feather  duster.  Notwithstanding 
he  was  zealous  and  active,  it  was  impossible  for  him  to  at 
once  protect  all  the  exposed  parts.  Still  more  difficult  was 
it  during  the  wiping  process,  with  my  body  entirely  ex- 


312  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

posed.  As  a  result,  my  bath  was  a  battle,  at  Avhich  I  had 
to  confess  myself  a  good  deal  worsted.  The  water  cooled 
off  and  freshened  me — but  I  would  be  fretted,  my  body 
smarting  in  many  parts,  and  my  blood  inflamed  with  the 
bites.  I  had,  as  a  consequence,  to  abandon  the  evening 
bath,  and  bathe  in  the  morning,  while  the  mosquitoes  were 
napping,  instead.  But  this  evidently  worried  George,  since 
he  knew  the  evening  bath  was  a  great  luxury  to  me.  He 
hammered  and  worked  away,  at  odd  spells,  for  a  day  or  two, 
on  a  funny-looking  frame,  which  he  was  making  up  of 
barrel-hoops.  Then  he  asked  me  for  a  mosquito-bar,which 
he  rigged  over  the  frame.  He  pretended  that  he  was  fix- 
ing a  screen  for  himself  to  sleep  under.  But  when  bed- 
time came,  he  commenced  moving  some  chairs  out  on  the 
gallery — then  he  brought  the  bath-tub  in — then  the  frame, 
which  fitted  nicely  over  the  bath-tub — when  it  was  all  plain : 
my  devoted  servant  had  contrived  this  plan,  which  would 
enable  me  to  resume  my  nightly  bath,  shielded  from  the 
mosquitoes.  It  was  a  complete  success,  and,  thus  securely 
housed,  I  could  bathe  at  leisure — rather  enjoying  the  snarl 
of  the  mosquitoes  as  they  beat  themselves  against  my  cage. 
But  more  than  half  the  pleasure  was  to  see  George's  de- 
light, at  having  fixed  me  up  so  nicely,  and,  at  the  same 
time,  completely  outwitted  our  common  enemy,  the  mos- 
quito. He  danced  about  on  the  gallery  the  first  night, 
talking  to  the  swarming  insects: 

'•'  I  jes  double  dar  you  to  go  in  dar  now  an'  bite  de  boss. 
Dis  nigger  is  jes  de  chile  to  spile  your  pesterin'  people  while 
dey's  takin'  a  wash.  Don't  come  around  heah  agin,  caze 
you  wont  git  nary  nudder  bite  off  de  boss  or  de  General 
dis  year." 

To  make  it  perfectly  fair  General  Dobson  and  myself 
used  to  draw  straws  to  decide  who  should  take  the  first  bath. 


WATER,    MULES,    MAKING    LOVE.  313 


CHAPTER  LVII. 

WATER — MULES — MAKING    LOVE. 

The  Fourth  of   July  was  near  at  hand,  and  yet  very 
much    of    our   cotton   was   still   choked   with   grass.      It 
would  be  long  after  the  anniversary  of  Independence  Day 
before  our  crop  would  be  clean,  though,  all  the  same,  we 
should  have  to  celebrate  it,  and  drink  our  barrel  of  beer. 
Our  laborers  were  doing  their  best,  considering  the  funerals 
and  sickness,  but,  matted  as  our  fields  were  with  Bermuda, 
crop  grasses,  and  weed-growths,  it  was  tedious  and  toilsome 
work,  and,   after  all,  there  was   so   little   accomplished  ! 
Laborers  and  teams  would  come  in  from  the  field  at  night 
worn  out  with  pulling  and  tugging  at  the  plow  and  hoe. 
There  was   little   singing  of  plantation   melodies   as   the 
lines  of  hands  came  straggling  in  from  the  fields,  after  the 
day's  work,  because  the  battle  with  the  weeds  had  taken 
all  the  music  out  of  them.     Each  plow-hand  mounted  his 
or  her  tired  mule  for  a  ride  in  from  the  field,  and  then,  sin- 
gle-file, they  all  w^ent  crawling  off  to  the  mule  stable,  the 
very  picture  of  a  worn-out  cavalcade.     Before  quitting- 
time  at  night  the  mules  would  become  "poky"  in  the  fur- 
row from  the  day's  tough  pulling.     The  men  and  women 
would  have  to  shout  themselves  hoarse,  and  ply  whip  and 
plow-line  to  keep  them  moving  at  all.    Once  in  a  while  one 
would  give  out  entirely  and  stand  in  his  tracks,  ears  lying 
back  on  his  head,  tail  between  his  legs,  taking  whip,  plow- 
line  and  imprecation  from  his  driver,  with  an  occasional 
kick  of  the  hind  legs  when  the  lash-string  stung  particu- 
larly sharp,  but  never  moving  until  the  traces  were  un- 
hooked, and  he  was  taken  to  the  ditch-bank  for  a  little  rest, 
14 


314  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

Tvhen  his  ears  would  go  up,  and  his  tail  would  come  out 
from  between  his  hind  legs,  as  much  as  to  say,  "  I  have 
conquered  ;  now  I  will  quit  my  stubbornness.'' 

It  was  no  uncommon  thing  for  men  to  grow  so  heated 
that  they  would  shed  one  after  another  of  their  garments, 
until  finally  they  would  only  have  left  on  them  hat,  shirt, 
and  shoes,  and  then  such  a  one  would  usually  start  up  some 
outlandish  melody,  making  the  air  ring  with  music,  at  once 
the  picture  of  the  veritable  Sambo. 

The  women  usually  had  a  string  about  them,  and  when 
they  went  to  the  field  they  would  tie  up  their  clothes 
around  their  hips  so  as  to  expose  themselves  to  their 
knees.  It  was  not  an  uncommon  vanity  for  them  to  wear 
stockings  with  gay  stripes,  and  with  the  pretty  ones,  thus 
rigged  for  work,  it  was  decidedly  a  picturesque  spectacle. 
Once  in  the  quarters,  the  string  was  untied,  and  the  clothes 
were  allowed  to  drop. 

There  was  one  feature  about  the  negroes'  consumption 
of  water  that  was  novel.  Particular  about  the  kind  they 
drank,  they  were  indifferent  as  to  its  temperature.  If  it  was 
rain  or  river  water,  it  was  all  right.  These  were  children 
of  nature,  and  here  also  was  proof  that  the  use  of  cold 
water  is  a  cultivated  taste.  With  their  bodies  heated  by 
their  toil,  they  could  not  have  drank  cold  water  of  the 
same  quantity  without  a  serious  shock  to  their  systems. 
The  temperature  of  the  water  they  did  drink  produced  no 
such  shock.  A  certain  flow  of  perspiration  was  necessary 
for  health — this  could  only  be  secured  through  copious 
draughts  of  water  of  such  temperature  as  would  not  shock 
the  system,  and  thus  check  the  perspiration.  Uncle  Wash 
said  : 

"  Ef  you  puts  cor  water  in  a  he't-up  biler,  it  is  mighty 
apt  to  bust.  A  darkey,  when  he  's  at  work,  dese  hot 
days,  is  jes  like  a  he't-up  biler,  an'  ef  you  do  n't  want  to 
'stroy  him  keep  de  col'  water  away.     We  has  to  hab  de 


WATER,   MULES,   MAKING   LOVE.  315 

sweat,  jes  as  do  biler  has  to  hab  de  steam ;  hit  takes  he't- 
up  water  to  make  hit." 

While  the  plowing  of  land  for  cotton  requires  two  mules, 
its  cultivation  requires  but  a  single  one.  A  particular 
mule  was  allotted  to  each  one  of  our  plow-hands.  There  is 
a  certain  congeniality  between  a  negro  and  a  mule — they 
soon  learn  each  other's  ways.  It  was  common  for  each 
hand  to  speak  of  the  mule  with  which  it  was  his  task  to 
work  as  his  own,  and  in  many  cases  they  became  inordi- 
nately fond  of  their  mules,  treating  them  far  better  than 
they  did  themselves. 

Mane  and  tail  were  kept  well  roached,  and  the  animal  was 
always  thoroughly  groomed  ;  and,  although  the  stock-yard 
man  had  charge  of  the  feeding  and  watering,  they  would 
insist  on  themselves  seeing  that  their  "  kreeter "  was 
watered  and  fed,  frequently  standing  guard  at  the  feed- 
trougli,  when  hungry  themselves,  to  see  that  no  other 
"  pesky  "  mule  got  the  "  grub  "  allotted  to  their  own.  'No 
animal  responds  so  promptly  to  proper  attention  as  a  mule, 
and  consequently  this  devotion  gave  those  who  jn-actieed 
it  sleek,  fat  animals.  Proudly  would  such  careful  ones  sit 
upon  their  mules  as  they  rode  to  and  from  the  field.  Let 
some  child  or  tired  auntie  ask  to  get  up  behind  and  ride 
to  the  quarters,  and  there  would  be  the  prompt,  angry  re- 
sponse : 

"  No,  sa',  yu  can  't  ride  on  dis  yer  mule ;  he  aint  gwyne 
to  tote  nary  'nudder  soul  but  dis  chile,  plum  pintedly." 

"  Unk  Bob,  please,  sa',  le'm  me  ride  on  ole  Pete's  back 
a'hind  you." 

"  'No^Y,  Sis  Sal,  you  knows  mighty  well  dis  mule  wont 
carry  double." 

The  fact  was,  Uncle  Bob  could  not  say  no  squarely,  so 
tender-hearted  was  be.  Loving  his  mule  as  he  did,  he  fre- 
quently got  out  of  such  requests  to  double  up,  by  teaching 
him  to  kick  up  violently  with  the  second  person  on  his 


316  A   YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

back,  and  so  was  enabled  truthfully  to  give  the  answer 
above. 

But  "  Sister  Sal  "  did  not  believe  it — so  she  said  : 

"  Git  out,  TJnk  Bob,  you  knows  dey  aint  a  word  of  truf 
in  dat, — ole  Pete  wont  carry  double  !  Go  long  now,  Unk 
Bob,  wid  yer  story-tellin'." 

"■  Well,  come  on,  Sis'  Sal,  and  try  him." 

Pete  stood  perfectly  quiet  until  tired  "  Sister  Sal  "  got 
firmly  in  her  seat,  and  was  just  about  to  put  her  arms  around 
Uncle  Bob's  waist,  so  as  to  hold  on,  when,  at  a  signal 
which  he  understood,  from  his  master,  he  reared  up  be- 
hind, shied  off  suddenly  to  the  left,  and  there  lay  "  Sister 
Sal "  sprawling  in  the  dust. 

"  Dar  now,  Sis'  Sal,  I  recken  you  '11  belieb  unk  Bob  nex' 
time." 

"  Mules  is  jes  like  white  folks,  you  can't  place  any  'j^en- 
dance  in  'em,"  Sal  muttered,  as  she  picked  herself  out  of 
the  dust,  amid  the  jeers  and  laughter  of  the  hoe-gang. 

Nobody  ever  asked  uncle  Bob  to  ride  on  behind  him 
after  that. 

Some  of  the  men  were  more  careful  of  their  mules  than 
they  were  of  their  wives,  and  more  careful  of  themselves 
than  either,  for  they  would  mount  them  at  night  and  ride 
off  to  the  quarters,  leaving  their  tired  wives  to  follow  be- 
hind on  foot,  though  there  was  here  and  there  a  negro  with 
gallantry  enough  to  take  on  behind  him  his  weary  spouse, 
and  thus  save  her  sometimes  a  mile's  walk. 

Aunt  Milly,  the  wife  of  Uncle  "Wash,  who  was  one  of  the 
plow-hands,  always  looked  out  for  him  and  saw  that  he 
got  a  ride  in,  only,  as  it  was  her  mule,  "  de  ole  man,"  as 
she  called  him,  had  to  get  on  behind. 

"  Sit  up  dar,  Milly  ;  sit  up  dar,"  I  once  heard  Uncle 
Wash  exclaim.  "  I  declar'  dis  mule  is  so  short  dere  aint 
room  for  two  on  her  back."  Aunt  Milly's  mule  was 
"short-coupled,  pony-built,"  and  Wash  said  what  was 
true,  but  her  mistress  was  prompt   to  resent  any  insinua- 


WATER,   MULES,    MAKING    LOVE.  317 

tion  against  her  beast,  even  though  it  came  from  her  hus- 
band. 

* 

"  Git  out  dar,  ole  man,"  she  replied,  ''  dis  mule's  done 
pulled  fru  de  'JMudah  an'  crap-grass,  so  her  back 's  all 
d rawed  up.  Spec  a  mule  to  be  humpin'  from  sun-up  to 
sun-down,"  she  added  with  disdain,  "  an'  den  hab  a  long 
back.  De  wunder  is  dat  dis  mule's  got  any  back  't  all — ef 
da  's  much  mo'  of  dis  so't  of  pullin'  de  mule's  back  'Jl  be 
pulled  into  her  shoulders  or  rump." 

"Shut  up  dar,  Milly;  I  didn't  mean  no  'suit  to  yo' 
mule." 

There  were  a  number  of  the  women  who  were  in  the 
market — thatis,  they  had  neither  married  nor  j)ermanently 
"  took-up  "  with  any  of  the  men.  There  was  constant 
love-making  between  them  and  negro  men  in  like  condi- 
tion. These  women  were  more  highly  favored  than  their 
married  sisters,  for  they  could  always  get,  for  the  asking,  a 
ride  home  from  the  field  up  behind  some  of  their  fellows, 
and  frequently  the  invitation  was  extended  to  them.  It 
furnished  a  double  opportunity — for  rest  and  for  love 
making. 

The  hoe-gang  furnished  another  opportunity  for  love 
making.  The  lovers  would  have  adjoining  rows ;  some- 
times it  was  the  man,  sometimes  it  was  the  woman,  who 
w^as  the  most  expeditious  with  the  hoe — in  either  case  the 
one  would  help  the  other  out.  I  have  seen  negro  men  so 
anxious  to  show  their  devotion,  that  they  would  hoe  half 
the  rows  of  the  objects  of  their  affection  in  addition  to  their 
own.  Uncle  "Wash  had  a  keen  eye  for  this  sort  of  thing, 
and  would  soon  detect  it. 

'■  Hurry  up  da,  gal ;  fotch  up  dat  row  Hbely,  now,  nig- 
ger. Git  off  dat  nigger's  row,  'Lias,  an'  luff  her  do  her 
own  hoein'.  Jis  stop  dat  lub-doin,  now,  heah  me  !  "  would 
ring  out  from  Wash. 

In  the  days  of  slavery,  a  very  large  percentage  of  the 
women  almost  constantly  had  nursing  children.     Such  was 


318  A    YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

not  the  case  now.  During  the  entire  year,  there  was  but 
one  nursing  babe  on  the  Hebron  plantation,  and  it  was 
brought  to  the  place  with  the  Yicksburg  force,  so  there 
was  not  a  birth  to  chronicle ;  and  yet,  with  our  force,  in 
old  times,  there  would  have  been  at  least  twenty-five. 

With  no  increase,  and  with  such  a  fearful  mortality  in 
our  force — if  our  plantation  was  an  index  to  the  general 
situation,  as  it  was,  no  doubt — it  seemed  that  the  i)resent 
generation  of  negroes  would  be  the  end  of  the  race  as  a 
power  in  this  country,  and  that  such  would  be  the  fact  was 
the  opinion  of  many  earnest  thinkers  among  those  who 
had  an  opportunity  to  judge. 

There  being,  then,  no  children,  the  nursing  feature, 
which  General  Hampson  had  dwelt  on  at  such  length  when 
he  showed  us  Hebron,  was  entirely  absent. 


CHAPTER  LYIII. 


GRIEVANCES. 


As  these  pages  have  already  shown,  our  reception  was 
the  opposite  of  what  it  ought  to  have  been.  There  was 
the  deception  which  Captain  Tyler,  the  wharf-boat-man, 
had  practiced  on  us  with  respect  to  the  landing  of  our 
freight ;  the  luring  away  of  the  Hebron  negroes,  during 
our  absence  to  procure  our  outfit ;  the  fiailure  of  Colonel 
Ditston  to  keep  his  contract  to  furnish  us  our  seed  for 
j^lanting  ;  the  overcharge  on  the  part  of  our  landlord  of 
two  hundred  dollars  rent  for  his  house ;  the  response  of 
Mrs.  Harding's  neighbors  when  Jane  was  sent  over  to 
borrow  a  coffee-mill  and  a  coal  of  fire ;  the  droj^ping  down 


^ 


GRIEVANCES.  319 

of  veils,  turning  away  of  fiices,  and  pulling  up  of  skirts, 
when  passing  us  ;  the  insulting  message  which  the  saw- 
mill man  had  sent  us  ;  the  blow  which  had  been  adminis- 
tered to  Percy  Layton  ;  the  long,  black  chapter  of  mur- 
ders by  the  "  mischievous  boys"  of  the  village ;  the  stam- 
peding of  negro  immigration — and  so  on  for  quantity. 

Long  since  had  the  solemn  conviction  forced  itself  upon 
us,  that  there  was  scarcely  any  sign  of  a  sentiment  in  our 
favor.  The  crushing  fact  stood  out  in  our  pathway,  that 
we  were  as  much  in  the  enemy's  country  as  were  our  sol- 
diers during  the  war — the  difference  being  that  we  were 
here  unprotected  and  almost  alone,  while  our  soldiers  had 
the  army  with  them.  The  battles  were  over,  it  was  true, 
but,  instead  of  white-winged  peace,  bushwhacking  was  the 
order. 

Month  after  month  of  this  weary  year  rolled  by,  and 
each  succeeding  one  saw  the  feeling  against  us  more  bitter, 
more  intense.  President  Johnson's  policy  was  daily  in- 
creasing the  fire  in  the  Southern  heart.  First,  it  was  not 
so  much  expressed  in  their  words  as  in  their  looks.  Then 
came  feeble  utterances  against  the  Xorth  and  JS'orthern 
people.  Louder  and  louder  grew  these  utterances.  Hu- 
man blood  began  again  to  redden  Southern  soil,  and  it  was 
generally  loyal  human  blood. 

The  time  came  when  our  neighbors  seemed  to  think  that 
every  one  must  take  sides.  Accordingly,  one  morning,  while 
assisting  to  make  some  repairs  on  our  grist-mill,  a  man 
rode  up,  whom  I  recognized  as  a  resident  of  the  village.  As 
he  dismounted,  his  short,  sacque  coat-tail  flew  up,  and 
there,  exposed  to  full  view,  was  a  huge  navy  revolver.  He 
introduced  the  object  of  his  visit  softly,  but  at  once, 
saying : 

"  I  was  riding  by,  and  thought  I  would  stop  and  see  how 
you  stand  on  the  political  questions  of  the  day.  Do  you 
indorse  Andy  Johnson's  policy?"  I  replied,  "We  came 
here  for  purposes  of  farming,  not  with  an}^  intention  to 


320  A   YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

participate  in  politics — in  fact,  with  a  fixed  determination 
not  to  do  so.  General  Dobson  had  a  profession,  and  I  was 
in  business,  where  we  came  from.  ]S"either  of  us  were  pol- 
iticians there.  "We  have  shown  our  friendly  feeling  to- 
ward the  South  by  the  purchase  of  this  plantation  and 
coming  here  to  live.  In  the  IS'orth  the  few  are  politicians 
— a  great  many  of  the  j)eople  take  scarcely  enough  inter- 
est in  politics  to  vote  unless  there  is  some  special  issue  at 
stake." 

"  That's  just  what's  the  matter  here  now.  There  is  a 
a  special  issue.  The  South  lost  in  the  war.  Andy  John- 
son 's  come  to  our  rescue.  We  've  all  got  to  take  sides  for 
or  agin  the  policy.  We  must  know  who  our  friends  are. 
and  who  are  our  enemies." 

"You  must  excuse  me,  sir.  I  can  't  express  an  opinion 
on  the  limited  information  before  me.  Since  coming  here 
I  have  seen  or  read  but  few  papers,  and  do  not  feel  at  all 
posted.  The  fact  is,  I  have  been  so  absorbed  in  the  plan- 
tation that  I  feel  I  scarcely  know  any  thing  else,  and, 
if  you  are  to  judge  by  the  sorry  outlook,  you  will  say  that 
I  don't  know  very  much  of  this."  The  latter  was  added 
laughingly,  and  with  a  view  of  changing  the  subject.  But 
as  well  try  to  change  the  current  of  the  Mississippi.  My 
visitor  might  have  been  diverted  by  an  invitation  to  take 
a  drink,  but  I  had  nothing  except  the  cool  water  under  the 
gin.  I  offered  him  this,  and  he  drank  it,  heating  it  up 
first,  however,  from  the  contents  of  a  flask,  which  he  drew 
from  his  coat-pocket.  Then  he  rode  off,  with  an  ugly  look 
on  his  face,  which  boded  mischief  to  us. 

A  few  days  later  we  received  a  file  of  papers  from  the 
North,  containing  accounts  of  horrible  murders,  in  the 
South,  of  new-comers  like  ourselves.  Just  across  the  river 
from  us  a  late  Federal  general  had  been  fatally  shot,  while  sit. 
ting  in  his  door  at  night,  cooling  off  after  the  heat  and  labor 
of  the  day.  Some  distance  above  us  three  Northern  men 
were  working  a  plantation  together.     One  morning,  before 


GRIEVANCES.  321 

day,  while  all  were  asleep,  four  men.  disguised  by  black- 
ing their  faces,  and  other  means,  broke  into  their  house, 
woke  the  gentlemen,  demanding  their  money  and  arms. 
They  being  entirely  helpless,  their  arms  were  given  up, 
and  a  trunk,  containing  about  three  thousand  dollars,  was 
pointed  oat.  The  robbers  immediately  forced  it,  secured 
the  prize,  and  then  proceeded  to  rifle  the  men's  pockets, 
and  pick  up  whatever  valuables  they  could  find.  Two  of 
them  left  the  house,  and  with  another  party  of  ruffians  en- 
tered the  stable,  and  wantonly  killed  the  animals  therein. 
The  negro  laborers  were  awakened  by  the  firing,  and  most 
of  them  having  served  in  the  army,  and  having  retained 
their  arms,  started  for  the  stable.  The  robbers  fired  on 
them  and  killed  five  ;  the  remaining  negroes  returned  the 
fire,  and  retreated  to  their  quarters.  The  band  then  set 
fire  to  the  stable,  which,  with  the  cotton-gin,  was  destroyed. 
The  murderers  then  moved  in  a  body  to  the  woods.  In 
the  morning,  after  burying  the  murdered  negroes,  the 
planters,  with  their  hands,  followed  the  assassins  ;  but  sat- 
isfied, by  the  number  of  their  tracks,  that  they  could  not 
cope  with  so  many,  they  soon  returned  to  the  plantation. 

In  Georgia  a  negro  was  fastened  to  a  stake,  faggots  were 
piled  around  him,  and  he  was  roasted  to  death. 

Even  in  the  enlightened  city  of  New  Orleans,  a  young 
lawyer,  from  the  North,  was  notified  to  leave,  shortly  after 
his  location  there,  simply  because  he  had  the  courage  to 
express  what  were  called  Northern  sentiments. 

From  these,  and  other  instances  given,  it  was  plain  to  be 
seen  that  the  '•'  mischievous  boys  "  were  at  work  in  more 
places  than  one  in  the  South.  The  same  mail  which 
brought  this  file  of  papers  also  brought  letters  from  friends 
expressing  apprehension  for  our  personal  safety.  We 
laughed  at  their  fears,  as  we  read  their  letters ;  still  they 
must  have  impressed  us. 

The  following  morning  I  was  at  the  blacksmith-shop, 
superintending  some  repairs,  when,  chancing  to  look  down 
14* 


322  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

the  front  road,  I  espied  about  half  a  mile  off  a  party  of 
horsemen  comins:  directly  toward  us,  and  travelino-  at  a 
rapid  gait.  As  a  gust  of  wind  blew  the  cloud  of  dust 
away,  which  partially  enveloped  them,  I  made  out  at  least 
a  dozen  in  the  party. 

The  first  thoutcht  I  had  was  of  the  numerous  murders 
of  new-comers  in  the  South,  and  then  came  the  further 
thought  that  this  was  to  be  an  attack  upon  us.  Our  time 
had  come  at  last.  The  apprehensions  expressed  in  the  let- 
ters, which  we  had  laughed  at,  were  well  grounded.  With- 
out saying  a  word  to  either  the  blacksmith  or  carpenter,  I 
walked  across  the  road,  and  at  once  entered  our  cabin. 
Dobson  had  just  gotten  up,  and,  in  his  slippers  and  night- 
shirt, was  shaving  himself. 

"  G-eneral,"  I  said,  "  there  is  a  party  of  horsemen  com- 
ing up  the  road.  It  looks  suspicious.  May  be  they  are 
friends,  but  you  know  we  never  receive  any  white  friends, 
and  I  fear  they  are  not.  Do  n't  you  think  we  had  best 
prepare  ourselves  for  a  possible  attack  ?" 

'■'  Yes,  I  think  so,"  he  rej^lied  deliberately ;  then  he 
walked  deliberately  to  the  door,  looking  down  the  road, 
and  came  back — not  quite  so  deliberately,  though  not  in 
the  least  flurried. 

"  They  have  chosen  a  time,"  he  said,  "  when  our  people 
are  all  in  the  field  ;  so  that  we  are  left,  in  a  measure,  de- 
fenseless. But  if  they  are  enemies  we  will  do  the  best  we 
can." 

While  saying  this,  the  blood  in  his  face  began  to  disap- 
pear at  the  roots  of  his  hair,  deliberately  passing  down  his 
face,  and  under  his  collar. 

Notwithstanding  the  excitement,  this  deliberate  disap- 
pearance of  Dobson's  blood  struck  me,  and  I  exclaimed  : 

"  It 's  in  the  blood  !" 

"  What 's  in  the  blood  ?"  he  asked. 

"  If  you  could  have  seen  the  pallor  coming  over  your 
face,  you  would  understand — that  your  deliberate  ways  are 


GRIEVANCES.  323 

natural,  and  that  it  is  in  your  blood  never  to  be  in  a 
hurry." 

AVe  both  laughed  as  heartily  over  this  as  we  could  be 
expected  to  do  under  the  circumstances  of  our  danger. 

While  the  General's  face  was  pallid,  it  showed  no  signs 
of  fear.  Ilis  Henry  rifle  stood  in  the  corner  of  the  room 
in  its  cover,  and  while  taking  out  a  pair  of  pistols  from  his 
trunk,  he  coolly  said  : 

"  George,  take  the  cover  off  that  gun." 

Sixteen  loads  in  the  Henry  rifle,  two  sixshooters,  two  der- 
ringers, and  a  double-barreled  shot-gun,  comprised  our 
arms. 

I  brought  in  from  the  store-room  a  bag  of  buck-shot,  a 
canister  of  powder,  and  a  supply  of  caps.  Dobson  took 
from  his  trunk  a  quantity  of  cartridges.  We  then  barred 
all  the  doors,  but  one,  and  all  the  windows.  The  latter 
had  tight  board  shutters,  on  hinges,  fastening  inside  with 
a  hook. 

Scarcely  were  our  arrangements  completed  before  we 
could  hear  the  clatter  of  the  horses'  hoofs  in  the  road. 
Then  a  sudden  bringing-up  at  the  gate  followed. 

Yes,  it  was  a  call  on  us, — whether  for  good  or  evil,  we 
should  shortly  see.  Only  a  few  steps  intervened  between 
the  gate  and  cabin.  We  could  distinctly  hear  the  clanking 
of  horses'  bits,  and  .the  creaking  of  the  saddle-leathers.  The 
blacksmith's  hammer  had  ceased  its  blows. 

Except  the  visit  of  a  friendly  overseer  from  a  neighbor- 
ing plantation,  the  recent  call  at  the  gin-house,  and  oc- 
casional calls  from  new-comers,  this  was  the  first  we  had 
been  honored  with.  My  having  failed  to  satisfy  the  gin- 
house  visitor  might  be  the  cause  of  the  present  visit.  I 
could  not  imagine  to  what  else  it  should  be  attributed. 
There  was  certainly  a  revolution  in  the  country  if  it  was 
friendly.     I  looked  at  Dobson,  inquiringly,  and  he  said  : 

<'  Mischief" 

A  knock  at  the  door  of  our  store-room  followed. 


324  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

George  was  stationed  to  answer  it. 

We  heard  him  open  it  and  ask  :  "  What  is  it,  sah  ?  " 

We  could  not  make  out  the  answer,  but  directly  he  came 
into  our  room  to  say  it  was  a  party  of  men  after  a  run- 
away negro,  who  wanted  to  know  if  there  was  any  such 
on  Hebron. 

I  went  to  the  door  at  once,  invited  them  into  the  store, 
and  so  great  was  my  relief  that  I  wasted  a  quart  of  whisky 
on  the  party,  and  ere  long  they  started  off  in  search  of 
their  negro  with  a  whoop  and  a  yell.  As  they  rode  off 
George  said  :  "  Dat  's  jes  de  way  dey  used  to  hunt  niggas 
in  reb  times,  'cept  dey  didn't  hab  dogs  wid  'em." 

This  was  our  first  alarm,  and,  although  a  false  one,  served 
to  show  the  nervous  condition  we  were  in.  A  month 
later  we  had  the  second,  which,  although  not  presenting  as 
serious  an  aspect,  at  the  beginning,  as  the  first,  made  up 
for  this  lack  at  the  close.  It  was  when  the  news  came  of 
the  overthrow  of  a  constitutional  convention  in  ^ew  Or- 
leans, accompanied  by  several  murders  of  members.  Un- 
der orders  from  the  President,  the  troops  did  not  inter- 
fere to  arrest  bloodshed.  This  led  the  Southern  people  to 
believe  that  they  could  do  as  they  pleased. 

A  party  of  the  "  mischievous  boys  "  gained  possession 
of  copies  of  New  Orleans  papers,  with  glowing  accounts 
of  the  bloody  affair.  Weighed  down  with  pistols,  and 
more  or  less  filled  with  rum,  they  came  to  Hebron  whooping 
and  yelling  like  so  many  demons.  They  came  into  our 
store  screaming,  "Victory!  victory!  we're  going  to  git 
back  all  we  lost  by  the  war.  Here  it  is,  read  it !  "  And 
then  they  rudely  shoved  the  New  Orleans  papers  at  us  for 
perusal. 

"  Oh  !  Andy  is  our  friend,  he  is.  He  sustains  our  courts 
in  ISTew  Orleans.  We  've  been  reinforcing  hell  with  radi- 
cals down  thar,  and  the  troops  are  pertecting  us." 

"We've  got  every  thing  our  own  way  now,"  said  an- 


GRIEVANCES.  325 

other  of  the  part}',  "  and  we  're  goin'  to  make  it  hot  for  the 
radical  2)arty." 

"  It  certainly  looks  that  way,"  I  said,  after  glancing  over 
the  head-lines.  "  I  see  the  President  stands  by  the  courts 
in  New  Orleans." 

Dobson  added:  "It  is  all  so  mixed,  I  can't  get  the 
straight  of  it." 

"jSTot  at  all,  General ;  not  in  the  least,  sa' — it 's  our  own 
people  ag'inst  the  radicals  ;  so  long  's  the  radicals  had  the 
President,  there  was  no  show  for  us  ;  but  he  is  with  us  now 
— so  good-by,  radicals." 

"  You  'd  better  believe  there  's  hell  in  a  hand-basket  for 
the  d — d  cowardly  radical  party." 

"  Yes,  and  every  man  's  got  to  take  sides,"  said  the  prin- 
cipal spokesman. 

''  That 's  so,  that 's  so,"  they  all  responded. 

"No  toting  water  on  both  shoulders,"  cried  the  ring- 
leader. "  Not  a  bit  of  it."  "  Every  body 's  got  to  speak 
out  in  meetin',"  was  the  general  response. 

Evidently  there  was  an  attempt  to  force  us  to  commit 
ourselves.  The  men  were  armed,  excited  by  liquor,  and 
frenzied  by  what  they  regarded  their  great  victory.  They 
showed  their  revolvers  freely,  and  strutted  around  the 
store  as  if  they  had  taken  possession.     The  outlook  was 

ugly- 

To  quiet  them  Dobson  said  :  "  You  know,  gentlemen,  we 
are  comparative  strangers  here — not  acquainted  with  the 
affairs  of  the  South.  We  have  never  been  politicians,  and 
have  no  intention  of  becoming  so  now." 

"  That 's  just  what  we  brought  up  these  papers  for,"  an- 
swered the  leader — "  so  's  to  post  you.  As  for  bein'  politi- 
cians, this's  the  South's  fight,  and  every  body  in  the 
South 's  got  to  take  an  interest,  or  git  out."  There  was  the 
expression  of  the  hyena  in  our  visitors'  faces  at  this  threat. 
"  I  showed  the  news  to  Col.  Tupper,  and  he  said  ;  '  Damn 
'em  ;  it's  good  enough  for  'em — they  'd  no  use  bein'  radi- 


326  A   YEAR    OF   WRECK. 

cals.'  Do  you  know  Tapper,  General  ?  He  's  a  splendid 
fellow." 

"  Yes,  he  is,"  they  all  shouted. 

Tupper  was  a  new-comer,  from  somewhere  in  the  ^orth, 
and,  doubtless,  had  adopted  the  principles  of  the  neighbor- 
hood he  chanced  to  be  in  ;  or,  it  may  be,  in  this  case,  the 
party  had  over-persuaded  him. 

The  General  said  he  had  heard  of  him,  but  had  never 
met  him.  By  dint  of  diplomacy  and  whisky,  we  were 
finally  rid  of  our  unwelcome  visitors,  without  putting  our- 
selves on  the  record  as  in  sympathy  with  them — but  we 
made  several  close  shaves  !  There  was  a  constant  display 
of  teeth  and  claws,  and  coarse  language  on  their  part — 
enough  to  last  us  for  the  rest  of  our  lives.  It  is  more  than 
likely  that  the  extra  half-gallon  of  whisky  we  got  into 
them  saved  us. 


CHAPTER  LIX. 

WE  CELEBRATE  THE  FOURTH  OF  JULY. 

Between  the  levee  and  the  river  on  the  lower  end  of 
Hebron  was  a  piece  of  wood-land,  well  set  in  Bermuda 
grass,  with  little  undergrowth,  and,  although  untouched  by 
the  hand  of  man,  having  a  park-like  appearance.  It  was 
on  the  very  edge  of  the  Mississippi,  which,  at  the  season 
of  highest  flood,  lacked  a  few  inches  of  covering  it,  thus 
annually  constituting  it  a  little  island,  upon  which  steam- 
boats landed,  depositing  plantation  freight,  which  would 
then  be  taken  in  skiff's,  or  flatboats,  and  carried  across  the 
slough  to  the  levee  beyond,  and  there  loaded  into  wagons. 

The  Mississippi  being  on  a  ridge,  the  bank  is  always  the 
highest  land,  but  this  spot  was  particularly  elevated.     Our 


WE  CELEBRATE  THE  FOURTH  OF  JULY.       327 

Diulcs  were  turned  out,  Saturday  afternoons  and  Sundays, 
to  graze  on  the  levee,  and  they  used  to  delight  in  this  grove, 
where  they  fed  off  the  luxurious  growth  of  the  Bermuda 
grass,  and,  when  filled,  stood  in  the  shade  where,  swept  as 
it  alwa^'s  was  by  the  breezes  from  off  the  river,  they  found 
the  coolest  spot  on  the  place.  There  was  no  need  to  mow 
it,  because  the  mules  always  kept  it  cropt  short,  thus  mak- 
ing a  very  presentable  lawn.  The  trees  w^ere  festooned 
with  the  wonderful  vine-growth  peculiar  to  this  region; 
mocking-birds  flew  in  and  out,  filling  the  ear  with  their 
music,  while  red-birds,  and  an  endless  variety  of  the  feath- 
ery tribe  captivated  the  eye  with  beauty.  Once  I  saw  a 
deer  standing  in  this  natural  park,  dripping  with  water, 
having  swam  across  the  Mississippi,  to  elude  some  hunter 
and  his  hounds.  His  broad  antlers,  erect  head,  and  dis- 
tended nostrils  were  only  visible  for  a  moment,  and  then 
he  shot  out  through  the  trees,  over  the  levee,  across  the 
plantation,  and  so  into  the  woods  again. 

In  this  park  we  decided  to  hold  our  Fourth  of  July  cel- 
ebration. Accordingly,  the  day  before  that  date,  we  de- 
tailed a  couple  of  men  to  build  tables,  and  arrange  for  the 
feast.  Dobson  thought  there  was  no  need  of  erecting  a 
platform  for  the  orator,  saying  : 

"  I  will  stand  in  the  lumber  wagon,  which  we  can  have 
hauled  down  and  properly  placed  for  the  occasion." 

Kature  had  been  so  lavish  toward  the  spot  selected,  that 
there  was  little  to  be  done,  beyond  the  placing  of  the  tables. 
The  green-sward  for  seats,  and  an  abundance  of  shade 
were  already  at  hand.  As  may  be  supposed,  we  had  no 
solicitude  regarding  the  place  of  our  festival.  It  was  the 
feast  itself  that  worried  us — and  not  the  drink,  for  we  had 
the  barrel  of  beer — but  the  necessary  victuals.  Flour, 
brown  sugar,  and  molasses  we  had  in  the  store-room.  We 
had,  also,  some  shoulder-bacon,  which  was  considered  nicer 
than  salt  pork. 

Faithful  Aunt  Clara  and  the  beautiful   Mary  were  de- 


328  A    YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

tailed  as  cooks.  They  baked  up  two-thirds  of  a  barrel  of 
flour,  fifty  pounds  of  sugar,  five  gallons  of  molasses,  into 
sweet-cake,  and  a  third  of  a  barrel  of  flour  into  short-cake, 
which,  with  a  dozen  shoulders  of  meat,  boiled  and  cut  up, 
constituted  the  principal  part  of  the  bill-of-fare.  When 
we  came  to  review  our  scanty  feast,  however,  we  sent  to 
the  village  and  bought  half  a  box  of  lemons,  to  make  lem- 
onade for  the  women,  thinking  they  might  not  all  enjoy 
the  beer.  We  also  emptied  the  shelves  of  our  store  of  sar- 
dines and  cove  oysters,  thus  adding  to  the  variety  and  at- 
tractiveness of  the  jn-oposed  feast.  With  these  final  ad- 
ditions, our  resources  for  the  occasion  were  exhausted. 

A  certain  feeling  of  sadness  crept  over  me  the  evening 
preceding  the  Fourth,  as  Dobson  and  myself  went  over  the 
slender  bill-of-fare,  which  was  all  that  was  possible  for  ns  to 
offer  our  people — not  so  much  that  we  had  not  the  money  to 
pay  for  a  more  attractive  one,  as  because  it  was  not  to  be  had 
for  the  money.  What  a  dinner  to  be  considered  a  feast : — • 
Ginger-cake,  short-cake,  shoulder-meat,  lemonade,  beer,  a 
few  sardines,  and  cove  oysters  ! 

Of  course  this  was  the  material  view — from  the  senti- 
mental point  of  view  it  was  all  different.  Here  were  the 
late  slaves  about  to  celebrate  a  national  holida}'.  Their 
joy  should  be  not  in  food,  but  in  freedom.  Hitherto, 
under  the  law,  they  had  had  no  more  interest  in  the  Fourth 
of  July  than  the  mules  on  the  plantations.  jS'ow  they  were, 
in  the  eyes  of  the  law,  human  beings,  their  freedom  secured. 
As  slaves  the  feast  had  been  everything ;  as  freedmen  the 
privilege  to  celebrate  the  day  should  be  every  thing. 
Whether  the  negroes  could  appreciate  the  difference,  how- 
ever, was  questionable — though,  doubtless,  more  for  the 
stomach  and  less  for  the  privilege,  would  have  best  suited 
most  of  them. 

That  they  all  enjoyed  it,  in  anticipation,  though  not  un- 
derstanding its  meaning,  was  unquestionable.  The  cooks 
worked  with   a  will,  and   the   estimation  in  which  they 


WE    CELEBRATE   THE   FOURTH   OP   JULY.  329 

seemed  to  hold  the  food  they  were  preparing,  was  the  only 
thing  that  really  kept  us  at  all  in  heart. 

"  What 's  dis  day  you  all  wants  de  darkies  to  celebrate?" 
Aunt  Clara  asked  me,  as  we  passed  by  the  cabin,  where  she 
and  Mary  were  baking. 

"  It 's  Independence  Day,  Aunt  Clara." 
'•  Well,  honey,  de  darkies  ou't  to  'commodate  you,  caze 
dcy  had  to  place  'pendence  in  do  white  folks  ob  de  ^orf, 
who  done  sot  'em  free." 

Aunt  Clara  thought  she  understood  it,  and  she  used  to 
explain  to  the  inquiring  ones  that  it  was  "  'pendence  day, 
and  we  darkies  hab  to  celebrate  it,  caze  ob  de  'pendence 
we  put  in  de  white  folks  up  JSTorf  who  freed  us." 

Jimmy  Watson  came  nearer  the  mark — he  said,  "  It  was 
de  day  as  made  us  a] I  free." 

"  Sho,  nigger,"  replied  a  bullet-headed  fellow,  "  I  do  n't 
know  much,  but  I  know  better  'en  dat ;  de  Fo'th  of  July 
neber  sot  dis  darky  free,  caze  I  was  free  de  berry  day  I 
j'ined  de  Yankee  sojers,  an'  dat  was  de  sebenth  of  March. 
De  Fo'th  of  July  my  freedom  day!"  he  continued,  as  if  in 
disgust.  "  Dat 's  all  you  know,  nigger.  De  Fo'th  of  July 
is  somethin',  but  it  aint  dat;  better  read  your  catechism, 
Jim,  'fore  you  tries  to  show  what  de  Fo'th  of  July  is. 
Aunt  Clara  got  de  straight  of  it ;  she  done  got  it  from  Mr. 
Harding  hisself " 

"  Dat 's  so,  sho',"  said  another. 

"Jim  's  projecking  wid  us  ;  he  knows  better,"  said  still 
another.     "  Nigger  !  you  better  quit  you  projecking." 

*'  Well,  I  may  be  wrong,  but,  howsomever,  de  Gin'al's 
gwine  to  'splain  it  to  us,  an'  den  we  '11  know  wedder  Jim  's 
wrong,"  was  his  generous  reply,  given  with  one  of  his 
hearty  laughs. 

"  link  Wash,  what  does  de  Fo'th  of  July  mean  any 
how?    I  hears  so  many  stories  'bout  it  dat  I  dunno  what 


330  A   YEAR   OF   "WRECK. 

to  belieb.  Ellis  says  it  was  de  day  Linkum  was  bo'n,  and 
de  ca'penter,  it 's  \Yashin'ton  buth-day." 

"  'T  aint  nuffen  ob  de  kind — it  means  time  to  hab  de 
crap  clean,"  said  AVash,  with  a  snarl,  an'  ef  j'ou  darkies 
bad  on'y  half  worked,  de  crap  'd  been  clean  by  dat  time. 
Ob  co'se  dat 's  what  it  means.  Did  n't  de  Gin'al  fbch  down 
a  bar'l  a  beer  to  be  drunk  on  de  Fo'th,  when  de  crap  'd  be 
clean  ?  You  niggahs  'd  better  stir  lively,  and  git  it  clean, 
too,  caze  ef  you  do  n't  de  Gin'al's  gwine  to  pos'pone  de 
Fo'th  till  ye  does." 

"  Go  'long  dah,  Unk  Wash,  do  n'  you  know  de  Gin'al 
can  't  pos'pone  the  Fo'th  of  July  ?" 

"  He  '11  do  it  sho',  ef  de  crap  aint  out  o'  grass.  I  heard 
him  tell  Mr.  Harding  so.  You  niggahs  bettah  stir  up,  ef 
you  wants  de  Fo'th  to  come  de  reg'lar  time." 

Dobson's  sinister  theory  as  to  the  beer  was  correct. 
Though  it  did  not  accomplish  a  complete  rescue  of  our 
crop  from  the  grass,  it  went  a  long  way  towards  it.  I  will 
here  make  record  that  the  purchase  of  that  barrel  of  beer 
was  the  best  investment  of  the  season. 

For  a  week  before  the  Fourth,  when  out  of  the  field, 
the  women  were  washing  and  starching  their  finery.  The 
men  and  women  were  more  particular  than  ever  to  have  the 
hair  on  their  woolly  heads  tied  up  in  little  rolls.  This  is  the 
usual  custom,  and  is  done  for  the  purpose  of  taking  "the 
kinks  out."  Tied  up  all  the  week.  Sunday  morning  the 
strings  are  taken  off,  and  the  hair  combed  out,  making  a 
huge  wavy  shock  for  a  head-covering.  The  Fourth  being 
a  grand  occasion,  their  hair  was  kept  tied  up  uninterrupt- 
edly for  several  weeks,  during  which  time,  as  is  their  wont 
when  their  hair  is  not  dressed,  they  appeared  with  their 
heads  wrapped  in  bandanna  handkerchiefs.  The  store  was 
cleared  of  its  stock  of  ribbons,  as  well  as  every  thing  else 
that  was  capable  of  being  tortured  into  an  adornment  of 
the  human  person.  "We  had  a  quantity  of  gay  belts,  col- 
lars, cuffs,  and  fancy  neckties  for  the  women,  white  shirts 


WE    CELEBRATE   THE   FOURTH    OF    JULY.  331 

and  vests  fo'r  the  men,  all  of  which  we  sold.  Hats  and 
shoes  were  especially  in  demand,  and  on  the  strength  of 
the  approaching  celebration,  we  sold  several  of  Dobson's 
cheapest  fancy  pipes.  Thus,  in  a  very  small  way,  it  was  a 
speculation. 

The  quarters  were  really  a  beautiful  sight  on  the  morn- 
ing of  the  Fourth.  Every-body  appeared  in  their  best. 
Heads  were  combed  to  a  nicety,  producing  shocks  of  wool 
so  large  as  only  to  allow  the  hat  to  perch  on  the  top  of 
them.  There  were  very  black  women  in  white  dresses  ; 
there  were  all  shades  of  dress  and  face,  from  the  Mary,  as 
black  as  night,  and  with  classical  features,  to  that  other 
Mary,  with  the  pink  in  her  cheek,  gown  of  the  same  shade, 
wavy  tresses,  and  her  redolence  of  tropical  growth.  The 
first  Mary,  in  her  white  turban,  with  her  Grecian  cast  of 
face,  her  cat-like  tread,  her  musical  voice,  and  singularly 
enough  with  scarcely  a  trace  of  the  negro  dialect  in  her 
speech,  had  all  the  graceful  ways  of  a  well-bred  woman. 
She  made  a  fine  picture,  as  she  sat  there  on  her  gallery, 
alongside  of  her  light  mulatto  carpenter-husband,  her  small 
foot  peeping  out  from  under  her  clothes,  in  harmony  with 
her  small  hand.  Her  "  man's  "  name  was  Jimmy  also,  and 
he  was  not  less  devoted  to  his  Mary  than  the  other  Jimmy 
was  to  his.  As  a  lady's  maid  she  would  have  been  in 
her  sphere  ;  on  the  plantation  she  was  simply  ornamental. 

"  How  's  all  ?"  she  asked  as  1  i:>assed  her  cabin. 

"  Thank  you,  Mary,  all  well." 

'■'■  When  did  you  hear  from  Mrs.  Harding,  and  the  chil- 
dren?" 

"  Yesterday." 

"  Was  they  well  ?  " 

"  Oh,  yes." 

"  'Member  me  to  them,  when  you  writes." 

"  Certainlj',  Mary." 

Further  along,  sitting  on  her  gallery,  was  Milly  Carter, 
in  her  best.     She  was  of  anotiier  type.     Though   with  as 


332  A   YEAR   OP    WRECK. 

pure  negro  blood  as  Mary,  her  skin  was  brown.  She  had 
an  almond-shaped  eye,  straight  nose,  small  lips  ;  her  face 
was  long,  classical,  and  full  of  character;  she  carried 
her  head  in  a  lofty  manner.  A  working-woman,  her  feet 
and  hands  were  large.  There  was  a  charm  about  Milly 
that  always  attracted  me.  She  was  never  boisterous  or  un- 
ladylike, and  as  she  sat  there  in  her  black  alpaca,  her 
bands  folded  over  her  lap,  the  i)icture  of  neatness,  she 
would  have  attracted  even  a  stranger. 

There  were  three  sisters,  with  a  brother,  of  this  family, 
in  the  neighborhood,  and  they  all  had  the  same  peculiar 
cast  of  features,  and  were  alike  noted  for  industry  and 
honesty,  as  well  as  the  utter  absence  of  what,  for  a  better 
name,  may  be  described  as  negro  ways. 

Milly  had  lived  with  a  "  took-up  man  "  when  a  slave 
woman,  but  at  the  close  of  the  war  she  was  married,  in 
due  form,  to  another  man,  her  first  one  having  enlisted  as 
a  soldier  and  left  the  country. 

Milly's  husband  was  a  pure  negro,  homely  and  smart. 
H-is  face  was  pitted  by  small-pox,  and,  at  first  acquaint- 
ance, there  was  nothing  attractive  about  him.  But  to 
hear  him  talk,  see  him  work,  and  to  know  him — these  were 
the  charms.  He  spoke  fair  English,  and  while  hearing  him, 
if  your  face  were  turned  away,  you  would  hardly  take  him 
for  a  negro,  there  being  scarcely  a  vestige  of  lingo  in  his  utter- 
ances. He  was  one  of  the  very  few  grown-up  negroes  am- 
bitious for  an  education,  and  was  practicing  almost  con- 
stantly with  his  pen  and  reader  when  not  in  the  field.  He 
was  sitting  alongside  of  Milly  on  the  gallery,  studying  his 
lesson.  As  I  came  up  and  stopi:)ed  at  the  steps,  both  rose 
and  offered  to  shake  hands,  Aunt  Milly  doing  so  with  a 
graceful  curtsey. 

"  How  are  you  both  ?  " 

Aunt  Milly  replied,  "  Poo'ly." 

Charlie  said,  "  AYell,  I  give  you  thanks." 

"  What  is  the  matter  with  you.  Aunt  Milly  ?  " 


WE   CELEBRATE    THE    FOURTH   OF    SULY.  333 

"  Do  weeds  and  grass  hab  worked  us  mightily." 

"  Yon  are  glad  to  get  a  rest,  then." 

"Yes,  sah  ;  indeed  we  is." 

"AYell,  I  hope  you  both  will  enjoy  yourselves  to-day." 

"  We  expects  to,"  they  both  replied. 

Aunt  Fannie,  sitting  on  her  gallery,  was  the  pure  Afri- 
can negro  all  over.  She  was  the  best  woman  fighter  on 
the  plantation,  which  was  saying  a  good  deal.  She  could 
drink  more  whisky,  and  kick  higher  than — hoe  as  much  cot- 
ton, and  plow  as  good  a  furrow  as — the  next  one.  She  had 
already  been  the  "  took-up  woman  "  of  three  different  men, 
since  she  had  been  working  for  us.  There  was  no  conceal- 
ment about  it  either.  She  would  say  :  "  1  would  n't  marry 
de  best  man  that  eber  libed  ;  I  gits  tired  ob  'em  too  soon  ; 
an' when  dat  time  comes,  1  do  n't  make  any  bones  ob  tellin' 
'em  so,  and  if  dey  aint  ready  to  quit,  it 's  a  fa'r  fight,  fists 
and  skulls,  and  de  best  one  wins." 

"  Good  morning,  Fannie,"  I  said,  ''you  are  going  to  have 
a  good  time  of  it  to-day,  ar'  n't  you?  " 

•'  Good  morning,  sah  ;  O  yes,  sah,  I'se  gwine  it  to-day, 
sho'.     How  's  de  missus  and  de  chil'en  ?  " 

"  They  were  well  when  I  heard  from  them,  thank  you, 
Fannie." 

"  Dat's  good  ;  I  reckon  you's  pow'ful  lonesome  widout 
you'  lady.     Is  you  gwine  to  hab  dancin'  to'day  ?  " 

"  Certainly ;  you  can  dance  all  day  and  all  night,  if  you 
like." 

"  To  be  sho'  dat's  good." 

"  You  must  not  get  into  any  fight  to-day,  Fannie." 

"  What  does  jou  mean,  now  ?  You  knows  mighty  well 
I  nebber  pesters  any  one  les'n  day  pesters  me,  or  give  me 
some  cuss  wo'd  ;  den,  ob  co'se,  I's  bound  to  fight.  Dat 
nigger  nebber  libed  dat  can  pester  or  cuss  me,  an'  me  not 
fight." 

"  Well,  I  hope  no  one  will  '  pester  '  or  '  cuss '  you." 

"  I  hopes  not,  too.  ' 


334  A   YEAR  OP   WRECK. 

"  Is  dey  gwine  to  be  any  'ligious  exercises  to-day,  Mr. 
Harding?"  Aunt  Clara  asked. 

"  We  ought  to  open  with  j^rayer,  I  think,  do  n't  you?" 

"  Ob  co'se  I  does  ;  ef  you  wants  to  be  bressed,  de  Bible 
says  you  must  pray." 

At  ten  in  the  morning  we  were  all  assembled  in  the 
grove  ;  that  is,  all  save  Dobson — he,  as  usual,  was  a  little 
late.  We  had  no  copy  of  the  Declaration  of  Independ- 
ence in  our  outfit,  and  it  was  impossible  to  find  one  in  the 
neighborhood,  so  I  was  relieved  of  my  duty. 

"  Brother  '^ias  "  opened  with  prayer  as  follows  : 

"  Bressed  Jesus,  we  's  all  'sembled  here  to-day  to  lis'en 
to  some  'marks  from  de  Grin'al,  and  to  eat  de  grub,  dat  's 
been  'pared  for  us  by  de  white  folks.  Make  us  willin'  to 
hear  de  truf  as  de  Gin'al  'spounsed  it,  and  to  eat  de  grub 
wid  willin'  hearts,  for  de  kingdom  come's  sake.     Amen." 

Then  followed  Gen.  Dobson's  speech,  a  plain,  practical 
affair,  instructing  the  negroes  as  to  the  meaning  of  the 
Fourth,  and  offering  many  good  lessons,  which,  if  they 
would  profit  by  them,  would  improve  their  condition,  he 
told  them,  and  to  which  there  was  a  general  response  : 

"  We  '11  do  it,  sho'." 

There  was  a  good  deal  of  a  disposition  to  turn  the  cele- 
bration into  a  religious  meeting,  in  the  way  of  responses. 
Dobson  was  frequently  interrupted  by  :  "  Dat 's  so  ;  "  '^  Yes, 
bress  God;  "  "  You  heah  me,"  and  so  on. 

The  man  whom  we  had  detailed  to  arrange  the  table  and 
supplies,  in  tapping  the  barrel  of  beer  had  evidently 
sampled  it  too  freely.  He  was  one  of  our  up-country  batch, 
and  had,  doubtless,  witnessed  celebrations  before,  so  he  in- 
sisted on  cheering,  and,  during  the  first  part  of  Dobson's 
speech,  at  nearly  every  sentence  he  would  break  out: 
"Hurrah  for  de  Gin'al."  This  he  kept  up  until  finallj^, 
sprawling  on  the  grass  as  he  was,  he  dropped  off  to  sleep, 
but  even  then,  until  he  got  soundly  asleep,  he  would  cry 
out,  drowsily :  "Hurrah  for  de  Gin'al,"  "for  de   Gin'al," 


WE  CELEBRATE  THE  FOURTH  OF  JULY.       335 

"Gin'al,"  until  at  the  last  be  went  off  for  good,  snoring 
lustily  in  response  to  the  rest  of  the  speech. 

80  enraged  were  some  of  our  people,  that  when  Dobson 
finished,  they  caught  up  the  drunken  fellow,  carried  bini 
down  to  the  bank  of  the  river  and  threw  him  in.  Of 
course  the  water  woke  him  up  very  sbortly.  They  had  a 
plow-line  tied  round  his  waist,  so  that  they  could  pull  him 
to  shore  when  they  thought  he  was  sufficiently  punished. 

His  wife  undertook  to  rush  down  after  him,  but  was 
stoj^ped  on  the  bank  and  held.  She  screamed,  "  You  're 
murdering  Boone,  you  're  murdering  Boone  !  Oh,  my  poor 
husband  ;  let  me  drown  wid  him  !  " 

"  Luff  her  go,"  Aunt  Fannie  cried,  "  Ef  she  's  fool  enough 
to  drown  for  dat  niggah,  she  ought  to  be  'lowed  to  do  it." 

On  all  sides  the  exclamation  was,  "it  done  sarved  him 
right  for  interruptin'  de  Gin'al."  Finally,  after  ducking 
him  well,  pushing  him  away  from  the  bank  several  times, 
Boone  was  hauled  in,  and  he  came  crawling  up  the  bank. 
Every -body,  by  this  time,  was  screaming  with  laughter  at 
the  spectacle.  His  wife,  released,  threw  herself  on  his 
breast,  crying,  "  Thank  God,  you  're  saved  !  " 

But  Boone  pushed  her  off,  saying,  "Go  'way,  gal ;  it 
sa'ved  me  right  fo'  gettin'  drunk." 

Our  master  of  ceremonies,  notwithstanding  his  acknowl- 
edgment of  the  justice  of  his  punishment,  was  very  much 
crest-fallen.  He  soon  slunk  away,  and  laid  himself  down 
in  the  sun,  where  he  could  at  once  reflect  over  his  folly  and 
dry  out  his  clothes.  His  wife  carried  dinner  to  him,  and 
they  took  it  together.  But  the  day  was  spoiled  for  Boone, 
though  the  episode  served  to  enliven  the  rest  of  our  p»eople, 
and  furnished  them  a  topic  to  talk  and  laugh  over  for  the 
remainder  of  the  day. 

The  feast  was  a  success,  and  the  beer  and  lemonade 
flowed  freely.  Although  there  was  enough  of  every  thing, 
such  as  it  was,  and  the  negroes  seemed  to  consider  it  very 
nice,  there  was  no  surplus.     Quite  a  number  of  negroes 


336  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

from  adjoining  plantations  were  drawn  to  the  spot  by  cu- 
riosity. They  were  invited  to  join  in  the  ceremonies  and 
did  so  willingly. 

Our  celebration  was  noised  about,  in  the  neighborhood, 
and  there  was  much  sharp  criticism,  among  the  whites, 
over  the  alleged  fact  that  we  had  placed  ourselves  on  an 
equality  with  the  negroes!  The  loudest  to  make  this 
charge  were  those  who  were  reputed  to  be  constantly  asso- 
ciating with  a  portion  of  the  negro  race,  in  a  much  closer 
intimacy  than  that  for  which  they  were  blaming  us. 

The  New  Orleans  papers  reported  that  the  Fourth  was 
celebrated,  in  that  city,  by  the  firemen  at  the  Fair  Grounds, 
where  there  was  a  charge  for  admission  :  "  Proceeds  to  go 
to  the  patriotic  purpose  of  assisting  to  pay  for  a  monument 
to  the  Confederate  Dead." 


CHAPTER  LX. 


THE    ARMY-WORM. 


As  early  as  July  19th,  the  first  alarm  of  the  dreaded 
army-worm  was  sounded  in  Texas.  It  did  not  follow  as  a 
certainty,  however,  that  its  visitation  was  to  be  general  in 
the  South.  In  fact,  there  was  no  serious  apprehension  of 
this. 

The  appearance  in  Texas  was  declared  to  be  only  a 
sporadic  case.  Other  similar  cases  would  be  reported  from 
time  to  time  in  different  localities,  but  beyond  this  the 
destroyer  would  not  go.  The  Southern  people  had  made 
up  their  minds  that  there  was  to  be  no  worm,  and  they 
would  not  listen  to  any  contrary  belief  Get  your  crop 
clean  of  grass  and  weeds,  was  the  word,  and  with  late  frost 
there  is  a  good  show  for  a  fair  middle  and  top  crop  yet. 


THE   ARMY-WORM.  337 

Encouraged,  therefore,  by  the  general  belief  and  voice,  wo 
continued  to  push  ahead. 

Already  had  Dobson's  worst  fears  been  realized  with 
regard  to  my  sickness.  Frequently  I  would  come  in  from  my 
exposure  in  the  field  with  a  chill  on  me,  but  as  soon  as  the 
fever  passed  oif,  in  the  evening,  I  would  begin  taking  qui- 
nine, in  eight-grain  doses,  until  I  had  taken  thirty  grains, 
and  the  next  day  I  would  be  in  my  saddle  again.  I  also 
swallowed  frequent  huge  pills  of  blue-mass,  followed,  the 
next  morning,  by  castor-oil  for  physic. 

But  neither  my  dosing  nor  sickness  kept  me  out  of  the 
field  more  than  a  few  hours  at  a  time.  The  umbrella,  which 
I  had  recently  scoffed  at,  was  now  my  faithful  companion, 
and  under  its  shade  I  rode  about  from  squad  to  squad,  en- 
couraging a  little,  scolding  a  good  deal,  and  pushing  every- 
where. 

To  get  our  crop  out  of  the  grass  and  weeds,  so  that  with 
no  worm,  and  a  late  frost,  it  would  reward  our  efi'orts,  was 
my  great  desire.  I  did  not  expect  health  now.  My  chilis 
were  chronic.  Frost  and  time  were  the  only  effective  rem- 
edies. Frost  was  in  the  future,  and  meanwhile  if  I  could 
save  my  life  so  as  still  to  superintend  our  work,  I  would 
be  satisfied. 

"  Mr.  Harding,  what  is  the  matter  with  your  voice  ? 
You  do  n't  seem  to  be  able  to  control  it  at  all,"  said  Dobson 
one  day.  "  It  is  as  fine  as  a  woman's.  Where  is  your  will 
theory?" 

Such  was  the  fact.  I  talked  with  a  squeak,  and  could 
no  more  control  my  voice  than  can  the  boy  who  is  just 
merging  into  manhood.  It  was  not  in  the  least  painful, 
but  it  was  very  annoying.  When  undertaking  to  give  a 
command  in  the  field,  there  would  issue  but  the  faintest 
sound  of  a  voice,  and  I  would  sometimes  hear,  in  an  un- 
dertone, from  one  negro  to  another,  the  remark  : 

"  De  boss  speaks  like  a  'oman." 
15 


338  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

Dobson  never  ceased  jesting  at  me,  because  i  did  not 
bring  into  requisition  my  "  will,"  and  restore  my  voice  to 
its  normal  condition.  Not  that  he  was  at  all  heartless. 
No,  indeed  ;  generous,  noble  man,  every  thing  that  his 
great  medical  skill  could  do  for  me  was  done,  and  in  my 
frequent  paroxysms,  he  nursed  me,  most  tenderly,  but  he 
said,  "  There  must  be  something  to  laugh  at  to  keep  our 
spirits  up." 

Just  to  the  extent  that  each  successive  chill  served  to 
weaken  me,  was  my  voice  weakened.  But  while  my  "  will 
theory  "  was  exploded,  my  energy  to  have  our  crop  clean 
was  unabated,  and  therefore  pushing  ahead  was  the  order 
of  the  day. 

By  sunrise  our  people  were  all  out  in  the  field,  and  the 
plantation  quarters  had  all  the  appearance  of  a  deserted 
village.  I  offered  rations  of  whisky  for  extra  work.  This 
I  soon  found  to  be  the  magic  power  that  compelled  into 
service  all  the  work  there  was  in  the  negro  of  either  sex. 

"  Hoe  and  plow  out  this  field  by  sundown,  and  there  is 
a  ration  of  whisky,  all  around,  for  you  when  you  come 
into  the  quarters  to-night,"  was  sure  to  accomplish  the 
task.  When  the  hands  reached  the  quarters,  to  see  them 
run  for  their  cups,  to  hold  their  ration  of  whisky,  and 
then  rush  to  the  store  to  get  it,  was  sufficient  to  convince 
one  of  their  fondness  for  it. 

Finally,  in  the  midst  of  our  struggle,  on  the  morning 
of  the  18th  of  August,  a  messenger  from  a  planter  living 
a  few  miles  from  us — a  native  Southerner,  and  reputed  to 
be  the  best  planter  in  the  country — brought  us  word  to  the 
effect  that  he  had  the  day  before  found  a  few  army-worms 
on  his  cotton,  and  he  thought  that  if  we  should  look  into 
our  largest,  and  healthiest  patches,  we  might  find  them, 
too. 

Though  this  intelligence  was  very  unwelcome,  its  com- 
munication was  the  first  act  which  bore  any  resemblence 
to  kindness  we  had  yet  experienced.     The  planter's  name 


THE  ARMY-WORM.  339 

was  Sinton,  and  he  had  a  partner  from  Boston.  They 
had  really  a  splendid  prospect  for  a  crop,  if  the  worm 
and  frost  kept  away,  having  several  hundred  acres  as  fine 
as  our  best  patches.  Mr.  Sinton  sent  us  word  they  were  go- 
ing to  try  to  kill  off  the  worms,  and  if  we  found  them  on  our 
cotton  and  would  call,  he  would  gladly  show  us  the  process. 

Accordingly  Dobson  and  myself  called,  when  we  found 
his  entire  force  organized  as  an  executioner's  squad.  Each 
one  had  two  paddles,  and  there  were  two  laborers  to  each 
cotton-row.  Walking  along,  each  one  on  his  side  kept  a 
sharp  lookout,  and  whenever  they  espied  an  army-worm 
lying  on  top  of  a  cotton-leaf,  they  crushed  him  with  their 
paddles. 

Mr.  Sinton  explained  that  this  was  the  first  crop  of  the 
army-worm,  and  that  there  were  but  a  few  of  them  in  each 
field ;  that  this  crop  did  not  undertake  to  eat  off  the  cot- 
ton-leaf to  any  considerable  extent,  or,  if  they  did,  being 
so  few,  their  effort  did  not  amount  to  any  thing.  He  told 
us  they  alwaj's  lay  on  the  upper  side  of  the  leaf,  and,  be- 
ing a  black-striped  worm,  were,  although  small,  easily  dis- 
tinguishable on  the  green  cotton-leaf  "  If  left  alone,"  he 
said,  "  this  worm  lies  around  on  top  of  the  cotton-leaf 
until  it  gets  its  growth,  which  takes  two  or  three  days ; 
then  he  crawls'on  the  underside  of  the  leaf,  folding  it 
around  him,  and  goes  into  a  chrysalis  state ;  at  the  end  of 
seven  days,  from  this  chrysalis  is  hatched  a  miller.  This 
miller  lives  about  a  week,  during  which  he  deposits, 
on  the  under  side  of  the  cotton-leaf,  innumerable  eggs. 
These  eggs  hatch  out  the  second  crop  of  worms.  In  the 
same  way  the  third  crop  is  hatched.  Each  egg  hatching  a 
worm,  each  worm  producing  a  miller,  and  each  miller  de- 
positing myriads  of  eggs,  by  the  time  the  third  crop  of 
worms  appear,  they  are  in  sufficient  numbers  to  eat  off  the 
leaves  of  the  cotton,  and  thus  kill  the  stalk." 

"  You  have  certainly  given  us  a  very  clear  description  of 


340  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK.     - 

the  miller,  and  the  worm.  You  must  have  made  them  a 
close  study,"  Dobson  said. 

"  Yes,  sir ;  1  know  the  army-worm  as  well  as  I  know 
the  mule.'' 

"  Let  me  see — what  time  do  you  give  between  the  differ- 
ent generations  ?  "  I  asked. 

"  During  the  ten  days  after  the  first  appearance  of  the 
worm,  he  goes  into  the  chrysalis,  and  comes  out  the  miller, 
commencing  immediately  to  lay  his  crop  of  eggs.  In  ten 
days  more  these  eggs  hatch  out  the  second  crop  of  worms." 

"  Which  makes  twenty  days  between  each  generation." 

"  Precisely." 

"  So  that  forty  days  from  now,  unless  they  are  arrested, 
that  portion  of  your  crop  not  already  made  will  be  de- 
stroyed." 

"  That 's  just  the  situation." 

'^  Your  crop  would  be  eaten  up  about  the  28th  of  Sep- 
tember? " 

"  Unless  they  are  arrested,  it  won  't  vary  two  days  from 

that  date." 

"  Such  being  the  fact,  what  is  your  programme  in  full?  " 
Dobson  asked.  "  Though  I  see,'  he  added,  looking  at  the 
men  at  work,  "  you  are  aiming  to  destroy  the  worm." 
"  Yes,  sir  ;  that  is  our  purpose." 
"  Do  you  think  it  can  be  done  effectually?  " 
"  If  the  effort  is  thorough,  and  general,  yes.  If  we  kill 
all  the  worms  on  this  place,  and  our  neighbors  above  and 
below  us  should  do  nothing,  you  can  imagine  what  would 
follow.  Their  first  crop  of  worms  would  all  hatch,  and 
their  millers  would  come  into  our  fields  and  lay  their  eggs. 
They  would  certainly  do  it,  because  we  have  the  finest  crop, 
which  the  miller  always  hunts,  so  we  would  have  the  sec- 
ond crop  of  worms  all  the  same.  And,  even  if  we  could 
destroy  the  second  crop,  our  neighbors  still  doing  nothing, 
when  the  third  crop,  hatched  in  their  fields,  has  eaten 
them  up,  it  has  only  to  cross  into  ours  and  destrov  us." 


THE  ARMY- WORM.  341 

'•  Have  you  notified  your  immediate  neighbors  ?  " 

"  Oh,  yes  ;  they  have  all  promised  to  go  at  the  work  of 
destruction." 

"  You  may  rely  upon  us  being  thorough,"  Dobson  said. 

"  \ye  did  not  doubt  that,"  Mr.  Sinton  replied.  "  We 
may  not  be  able  to  destroy  the  worm  altogether,"  he  added, 
"  even  with  the  best  efforts  ;  but  it  is  our  only  hoi:)e,  and, 
considering  the  stake,  it  is  worth  a  trial.  Even  if  we 
should  not  destroy  him  altogether,  we  may  reduce  him,  so 
that  it  will  take  the  fourth  generation  of  the  worm  to  eat 
us  up.  This  would  give  our  crop  twenty  more  days  to 
make,  which,  on  a  thousand  acres  of  healthy  cotton,  would 
make  a  difference  of  two  hundred  bales,  or  twenty-five 
thousand  dollars  in  value." 

Mr.  Sinton's  plantation  was  a  beautiful  sight.  There 
were  great  fields  of  luxuriantly  growing  cotton.  There  was 
good  corn  in  abundance.  No  grass  or  weeds  were  to  be 
seen  any  where ;  no,  not  even  in  the  ditches,  or  on  the 
ditch- banks.  All  the  ditches  were  newly-bridged  with 
heavy  two-inch  cypress  plank.  The  whole  place  was  sur- 
rounded by  a  brand-new  plank  fence. 

And  such  a  garden  !  There,  growing  in  the  greatest 
abundance,  was  every  thing  in  the  shape  of  vegetables. 
Poultry  were  cackling  in  the  yard,  and  a  herd  of  at  least 
a  hundred  cattle  were  grazing  on  the  levee-front,  anions' 
which  were  milch  cows.  In  a  pen,  at  the  right  of  the  house! 
were  some  twelve  or  fifteen  calves,  whisking  off  the  flies 
under  the  shade  of  the  locust  and  china  trees.  A  pair  of 
lordly  peafowls  moved  about  through  the  yard.  Then 
there  were  guineas,  turkeys,  old  and  young  chickens— in  all 
stages  of  growth,  from  the  diminutive  ones,  newly  from  the 
shell,  to  their  fellows,  just  the  size  for  frying.  A  flock  of 
sheep,  in  which  we  noticed  a  number  of  lambs,  and  some 
goats,  with  their  kids,  lying  in  the  shade  at  the  front  gate 
—and  which  we  had  to  scare  away  in  order  to  gain  entrance 
—also  spoke  of  thrift  and  plenty. 


342  A   YEAR   OP   WRECK. 

The  cabins  and  fences  around  the  house  were  newly 
white-washed,  and  the  house  itself  had  a  fresh  coat  of  white 
j)aint,  with  green  for  the  shutters  and  lattice.  The  doors 
were  off  their  hinges,  and  the  windows  were  up,  and  in 
their  stead  were  frames  covered  with  mosquito  netting  and 
hung  with  springs. 

As  we  sat  in  Mr.  Sinton's  oflSce,  the  breeze  came  sweep- 
ing in  through  the  netting,  and  there  was  scarcely  a  fly  or 
insect  to  be  seen,  and  not  a  single  ptriped-legged  mosquito 
to  annoy  us. 

"  What  a  splendid  arrangement  this  is  for  letting  the  air 
in  and  keeping  the  insects  out,"  Dobson  said. 

"  Yes,"  Mr.  Sinton  replied,  "  this  is  a  contrivance  of  my 
partner,  Mr.  Lothard.  He  brought  it  out  with  him  from 
Boston." 

Just  then  a  mulatto  girl  came  in  with  a  plateful  of  lus- 
cious ripe  figs,  followed  by  another  with  plates,  spoons,  and 
a  pitcher  of  what  turned  out  to  be  pure  cream.  "What  a 
treat  it  was  !  It  made  us  forget,  for  the  moment,  our  pros- 
pective struggle  with  the  army-worm,  our  discomforts  at 
home,  and  every  thing  else.  How  much  more  acceptable  it 
was  than  that  everlasting  whisky,  which  was  generally  set 
out  for  the  visitor  here  !  Notwithstanding  it  Avas  my  first 
dish  of  figs  and  cream,  there  was  no  annoyance  about  it, 
such  as  I  had  encountered  at  General  Hampson's,  over  my 
first  whisky  toddy. 

"  Do  figs  grow  readily  here  ?  "  I  asked. 

"  Oh,  yes;  as  readily  as  the  weeds.  I  reckon  jon  have 
already  found  out  there  is  but  little  trouble  in  getting  them 
to  grow,"  Mr.  Sinton  said,  laughingly. 

"  No,  sir  ;  the  trouble  is  just  the  reverse." 

"  It's  that  fact  that  has  put  the  squeak  in  my  partner's 
voice,  which  you  have  probably  discovered,"  Dobson  said, 
between  spoonfuls  of  figs,  and  with  a  mischievous  twinkle 
of  the  eye.     And  then  he  had  to  tell  Mr.  Sinton  about  my 


ARMY-WORMS.  343 

will  theory,  and  the  result,  over  which  there  was  a  good 
laucjb. 

"  I  go  out  at  all  times,"  Mr.  Sinton  said,  "  but  in  the  heat 
of  the  day  always  under  the  umbrella." 

"  Oh,  Mr.  Harding  is  a  convert,  now,"  General  Dobson 
explained. 

"  Yes,  I  observe  you  both  came  up  under  umbrellas.  But 
bave  you  no  figs  on  lEcbron  ?  " 

''  If  there  is  one  there,  we  have  never  discovered  it/'  Dob- 
son  answered. 

"  The  fact  is,"  I  put  in,  with  a  bitter  feeling  at  heart,  at 
the  contrast,  "  we  have  nothing  on  Hebron  but  weeds,  grass, 
and  discomforts  generally,  and  you  seem  to  have  nothing 
here  but  comforts.  This  is  a  paradise  ;  our  place  is  a  hell,  if 
you  will  pardon  so  strong  an  expression — but  no  other  word 
describes  it." 

'^  I  suppose  Hebron  is  bare  of  every  thing.  It  was  never 
a  home  for  anybody  before  the  surrender.  General  Hamp- 
son  intended  it  as  a  marriage  portion  for  one  of  his  daugh- 
ters. He  would  have  fixed  it  up  when  that  event  took 
place.  But  you  were  speaking  about  figs.  There  are  two 
crops  each  year — the  first  coming  on  in  June,  the  second 
later,  and,  like  cotton  and  oranges,  there  are  figs  in  all 
stages  of  growth  on  the  same  bush,  at  the  same  time.  The 
first  crop  hardly  amounts  to  any  thing,  but  the  second 
crop  runs  from  the  middle  of  July  to  the  middle  of  Sep- 
tember. The  fig-bushes  on  this  place  cover  the  sixteenth  of 
an  acre,  and  it  would  be  easy  to  gather  half  a  barrel  of 
ripe  figs  a  day,  during  the  season.  What  we  don't  consume 
and  preserve,  fall  upon  the  ground,  when  they  get  over- 
ripe, and  the  poultry  eat  them.  They  are  said  to  be  very 
flittening,  and  give  poultry  a  most  delicious  flavor." 

"  Is  it  much  trouble  to  plant  the  bushes  ?  " 

"  Kone  at  all ;  all  you  have  to  do  is  to  break  off  a  limb 
and  stick  it  in  the  ground,  and  it  will  grow.  In  this  rich 
soil  and  warm  climate  almost  every  thing  grows  from  slips. 


344  A   YEAR   or   WRECK. 

"  Coffee  ready,  eah." 

"All  right,  Dinah. — Gentlemen,  will  you  join  me  in  a  cup 
of  coffee  ?  It  is  a  beverage  I  take  as  often  as  I  come  in 
from  the  field.  I  drink  it  instead  of  whisky,  and  con- 
sider it  the  finest  possible  tonic.  I  don't  know  how  I  should 
get  along  without  coffee.  In  fact,  I  don't  believe  1  could 
do  without  it." 

Dobson  said :  ''TVe  are  drinking  it  the  first  thing  in  the 
morning,  and  it  has  a  delightful  effect."  And  so  we  joined 
Mr.  Sinton  in  a  cup  of  black  coffee. 

It  is  hardly  necessary  to  say  that  we  were  delighted  with 
this  gentleman,  and  every  thing  we  saw  during  this  visit, 
our  only  regret  being  that  we  could  not  meet  ]\Ir.  Lothard, 
who  was  absent  in  Yicksburg.  We  saw  none  of  the  ladies  of 
the  household,  though  the  tidy  arrangement  as  well  as  gen- 
eral neatness  of  every  thing,  bore  witness  to  their  presence 
in  the  house,  and  probably  it  was  their  thoughtfulness 
which  had  inspired  our  generous  refreshment  of  figs  and 
cream. 

Here,  then,  was  a  complete  verification  of  the  fact  that 
it  was  possible  to  live  comfortably  in  this  country.  So  far 
as  creature  comforts  went,  Mr.  Sinton's  household  lacked 
nothing.  If  this  was  a  sample  of  the  plantations  of  the 
South,  as  they  were  before  the  war,  then  there  was  much 
for  the  Southern  people  to  be  proud  of  That  Mr.  Sinton 
could  in  so  short  a  time  put  his  plantation  in  the  shape  it 
was,  and  surround  himself  with  every  thing  in  the  line  of 
farm  comforts,  stamped  him  as  a  remarkable  man.  Aside 
from  his  achievements,  we  were  charmed  with  Mr.  Sinton. 
His  Boston  partner  was  an  evidence,  we  thought,  of  the 
absence  of  sectional  bitterness.  And  there  had  not  been  a 
symptom  of  this  in  his  reception  and  treatment  of  us.  His 
every  utterance  was  stamped  with  good  common  sense,  and 
that  he  was  a  good  farmer  his  magnificent  crop  testified. 

Mr.  Lothard  returned  our  call  a  few  days  later,  and  we 
found  him  to  be  a  wide-awake  Boston  man,  just  as  thorough 


THE    ARMY-WORM.  345 

and  competent  in  the  line  of  accounts,  as  Mr.  Sinton  was 
in  that  of  agriculture. 

He  was  loud  in  his  praise  of  the  latter,  saying :  "  It 
would  be  impossible  for  half  a  dozen  spadefuls  of  dirt  to 
be  thrown  upon  any  spot  of  our  plantation,  and  Mr.  Sinton 
not  find  it  out  within  twelve  hours.  He  sees  every  blow 
struck,  every  furrow  turned,  and  almost  knows  each  cot- 
ton-stalk by  sight."  This  on  twelve  hundred  acres  !  Mr. 
Sinton  had  sprung  from  the  rank  of  overseer,  and  was  in 
every  sense  a  practical  and  self-made  man. 

Immediately  on  our  return  from  calling  upon  Mr,  Sin- 
ton, we  inspected  some  of  our  largest  cotton,  as  he  had 
suggested,  and  there  was  the  army-worm  !  Only  here  and 
there  one,  it  is  true,  but  enough  to  say  that  they  were  in  our 
field.  As  a  result  of  this  examination,  we  called  in  all  the 
plows  and  hoes,  put  the  mules  on  the  levee,  in  charge  of 
our  stock-yard  man,  where  they  could  easily  get  their  liv- 
ing, feeding  on  the  Bermuda  grass,  and  placed  our  entire 
force  in  the  field  with  paddles  to  slay  the  worms. 

Each  day  fresh  worms  were  hatched,  so  we  went  over 
and  over  again,  killing  them  off.  Wherever  a  leaf  was 
turned,  was  a  sign  that  some  worm  had  escaped  our  vigi- 
lence  and  gone  into  the  chrysalis  state.  Each  laborer  was 
supplied  with  a  bag,  with  orders  to  pull  these  off,  and  at 
evening  they  were  brought  into  the  quarters,  heaped  in  a 
pile,  and  burned. 

We  worked  our  force  zealously,  but  were  surrounded 
by  skeptics.  Our  neighbors,  above  and  below,  notwith- 
standing Mr.  Sinton  seconded  our  efforts  to  persuade  them 
to  do  so,  refused  to  lift  a  hand  toward  the  destruction  of 
the  worm. 

There  were  always  a  few  in  their  fields,  they  said,  and 
that  was  all  it  amounted  to ;  or,  this  was  a  grass-worm, 
and  not  the  army-worm  at  all.  There  was  no  danger, 
they  held ;  so  when  the  ten  days  came  around,  there  was 
a  second  crop  of  millers.     Some  of  these  came  into  our  cabin 


346  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

suddenly  one  evening.  We  suspected  them  to  be  the  an- 
ticii:)ated  army-worm  millers,  because  we  had  not  seen 
any  thing  like  them  before.  They  had  snuff-colored  wings, 
with  a  little  brown  sjDot  on  each,  and  they  had  pink  eyes. 
They  were  beautiful.  We  caught  one,  and  took  it  up  to 
Mr.  Sinton's  in  the  morning  for  verification  of  our  surmise. 

"  Yes,  that  is  unmistakably  the  army-worm  miller,"  Mr. 
Sinton  said.  "  They  came  beating  against  Mr.  Lothard's  net- 
ting last  night.  We  have  resolved  to  station  lights  for  them. 
You  know  how  an  ordinary  miller  flies  into  the  light  and 
gets  his  wings  scorched.  These  do  the  same.  During  the 
day,  they  hide  themselves  in  the  shade,  remaining  perfectly 
inactive,  coming  out  at  dusk  to  lay  their  eggs,  which  they 
do  very  rapidly,  flitting  from  stalk  to  stalk.  Their  eggs 
are  never  deposited  on  any  thing  besides  the  cotton  leaf. 
Kor  does  the  army-worm  ever  eat  any  thing  else. 

"  Our  plan  \s  to  build  platforms,  a  few  inches  higher 
than  the  cotton,  at  stated  distances  throughout  our  fields  ; 
fill  the  largest  plates  we  can  find  with  oil,  put  a  wick  in 
the  oil,  place  them  on  the  platform,  and  then  at  the  dusk 
of  evening  light  them.  The  millei\s  will  fly  into  the  lights, 
singe  themselves,  and  then  fall  into  the  oil,  where  they  will 
stick  fast.  Every  miller,  so  destroyed,  involves  the  destruc- 
tion of  myriads  of  eggs,  which  would  hatch  out  the  second 
crop  of  worms  ten  days  hence." 

I  visited  Mr.  Sinton's  fields,  and  found  his  force  busily 
engaged  in  making  platforms  for  the  lights.  A  sharpened 
post  was  driven  into  the  ground,  and  a  plank,  wide  enough 
to  hold  a  plate,  was  fixed  on  top.  Plates  were  being  filled 
with  oil,  and  wicks  placed  therein,  and  then  deposited, 
ready  for  lighting,  on  the  platforms.  Every  thing  was  to 
be  in  readiness  for  a  general  lighting-up  that  night.  1 
hurried  off  home  and  put  our  force  at  work  in  like  manner. 

In  order  to  see  just  how  destructive  a  single  light  would 
be  on  the  millers,  I  put  some  oil  on  a  plate,  with  a  wick  in 
it,  and  placed  it  on  the  end  of  our  cabin  gallery,  lighting  it 


THE   ARMY-WORM.  347 

up  at  the  same  time  with  those  in  the  field.  The  millers 
flew  all  around  this  light,  but  they  would  not  fly  into  it. 
They  seemed  to  understand  that  it  was  there  for  their  es- 
pecial destruction.  Every  thing  else  of  insect  life  flew 
into  it.  We  captured  but  a  single  cotton-worm  miller  in 
our  gallery  light  that  night. 

"  If  this  is  a  sample  of  what  the  rest  of  our  lights  have 
done,"  Dobson  said,  as  he  picked  out  the  single  scorched 
miller,  ''they  are  clearly  a  failure." 

''  They  certainly  seem  to  be  as  shrewd  as  they  are  beau- 
tiful," I  replied. 

"  Yes,  they  are  all  that,"  Dobson  answered,  with  a  long 
face.  "  There  have  been  plenty  of  them  flying  around  all 
the  evening,  and  only  one  has  been  captured.  Who  ever 
saw  a  miller  before  that  would  not  fly  into  a  light  ?  " 

The  following  morning  we  visited  our  lights  in  the  field. 
It  was  the  story  of  the  one  on  the  gallery  rej^eated,  only 
^Yorse — because  in  some  of  them  there  was  not  a  single 
miller. 

"  I  fear  we  are  in  for  the  worm,  Mr.  Harding,"  said  Dob- 
son, gloomily. 

"  Oh,  I  don  't  know— we  don  't  seem  to  be  able  to  do  any 
thing  with  millers,  but  that  will  only  compel  us  to  stir 
around  livelier  when  their  eggs  hatch  out.  We  can  kill 
the  worms,  and,  if  everybody  would  turn,  their  force  out, 
as  Mr.  Sinton  does,  I  firmly  believe  we  could  put  the  de- 
struction of  our  crop  off  until  the  fourth  generation  of  the 
worm,  thus  giving  us  twenty  days'  more  grace." 

We  rode  out  again  in  the  evening,  and  all  along  the 
ditch-banks,  flying  forth  from  the  dense  weed-growth  frino-- 
ing  them,  we  could  see  the  army-worm  millers  flitting  out 
into  the  cotton,  busy  as  bees,  laying  their  eggs. 

We  tried  our  lights  the  second  night,  but  to  no  better 
l^urpose,  and  we  then  abandoned  them. 

We  called  to  see  Mr.  Sinton  with  reference  to  his  success 


348  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

with  the  lights,  and  were  informed  by  him  that  his  also 
were  a  perfect  failure. 

Mr.  Lothard,  his  partner,  was  of  the  opinion  that  the 
worm  could  be  killed  by  s]Drinkling  the  stalks  with  a 
solution  of  diluted  carbolic  acid,  and  they  had  sent  to 
New  Orleans  by  the  packet  for  a  supply  of  it — also,  a 
number  of  sprinkling  cans — to  be  ready  for  the  next  crop 
of  worms,  which  might  with  certainty  be  looked  for  from 
seven  to  ten  days  hence. 

We  decided  to  rely  upon  our  paddles  to  destroy  the 
worm,  our  chemical  knowledge  telling  us  that  there  was 
little  to  be  expected  from  the  acid  treatment. 


CHAPTEE  LXI, 


CHOLERA. 


MiSFORTiJNES  never  come  singly,  and  among  other  visita- 
tions to  the  South,  during  this  memorable  year,  was  that 
of  cholera.  It  began  its  destructive  campaign  in  ISTew  Or- 
leans early  in  the  season.  Slowly,  but  surely,  it  had 
traveled  up  the  Mississippi.  Not  confined  to  the  crowded 
cities  on  its  banks,  it  visited  the  towns  in  the  interior  and 
also  the  sugar-plantations.  Its  breath  soon  pervaded  the 
atmosphere,  and  its  fatality  almost  kept  pace  with  the 
number  of  those  attacked. 

Baton  Eouge,  Natchez,  Vickburg,  and  all  the  important 
river  landings,  in  turn,  were  smitten.  So  fatal  and  wide- 
spread was  its  course,  that  not  only  in  several  of  these 
large  places,  but  in  various  parts  of  the  country  as  well,  its 
dead  were  buried  in  trenches,  as  are  soldiers  after  a  battle 
in  which  there  has  been  a  terrible  and  general  slaughter. 


CHOLERA.  349 

Never  had  an  epidemic  better  material  to  feed  upon.  Here 
were  cities  which  had  recently  been  but  so  many  grand 
camps  for  our  soldiery.  The  change  from  military  to  civil 
rule  was  the  signal  for  the  utmost  license.  The  new  city  gov- 
ernments were  only  such  in  name.  No  sanitary  measures 
were  taken.  Each  city  had  its  negro  quarter,  in  which 
the  black  race  were  huddled,  all  sexes  and  ages  together. 

The  atmosphere  became  pregnant  with  the  foul  odors, 
which  arose  from  these  dens  reeking  with  filth  and  cor- 
ruption. Not  a  hand  was  raised  to  stay  the  cloud  of 
noxious  vapors,  which  Lung  like  a  pall  over  these  South- 
ern cities.  Nor  was  there  pure  air  anywhere.  As  we 
have  seen,  the  country  was  weed -ridden,  the  ditches  were 
choked-up  and  filled  with  stagnant  pools,  on  which  coat- 
ings of  green  scum  had  formed,  from  which  malaria  was 
constantly  arising,  to  be  taken  into  the  lungs  at  every 
breath . 

Then  it  should  be  remembered  that  this  epidemic  was  op- 
erating upon  a  recently  enfranchised  race,  who  had  always 
been  cared  for  by  their  late  masters,  but  who  were  now 
left  to  care  for  themselves.  The  result  was, — filthy  cabins, 
filthy  persons,  general  and  all-pervading  filth.  It  is  in  just 
such  localities  as  these  that  epidemics  are  generated  and 
flourish.  Among  the  negroes  on  the  sugar  plantations  and 
through  the  settlements  below,  cholera  raged,  reaching,  in  its 
upward  march,  the  cotton  plantations,  and,  at  last,  appearing 
in  our  neighborhood. 

Every  thing  was  in  its  favor.  Unquestionably,  in  very 
many  places  the  negroes  were  very  poorly  fed.  A  large 
number  of  the  planters  were  making  their  crops  by 
borrowing  money  of  cotton-factors  in  New  Orleans ;  many 
of  them  had  already  exhausted  the  advances  promised 
them.  By  this  time  it  was  evident  the  crop  was  to  be 
short.  Especially  was  this  the  case  on  the  overflow  places. 
The  worm  had  made  its  apj^earance  in  different  localities. 
Factors  either  declined  to  fill  further  orders  for  planters' 


350  A   YEAR   OP   WRECK. 

supplies,  or  filled  them  reluctantly,  and  after  much  delay. 
The  result  was,  that  there  was  frequently  neither  meat  nor 
meal — nothing  was  left  for  the  poor  negro  but  to  go  out 
and  spear  the  unhealthy  fish  in  the  sloughs  and  bayous,  or 
to  eat  such  other  unwholesome  things  as  he  could  lay  his 
hands  on.  In  very  many  cases  it  was  either  this  or  starv- 
ation, and  in  many  thousand  cases,  during  the  year,  it  was 
death  all  the  same,  since  there  is  nothing  so  conducive  to 
cholera  as  the  soft  river  fish. 

The  first  outbreak  in  our  neighborhood — on  a  plantation 
just  below  us — was  the  direct  result  of  such  fish-diet,  and 
the  victims  numbered  twenty-seven  out  of  a  force  of  seventy- 
five.  The  plantation  in  our  rear  had  a  force  of  eighty- 
seven,  and  there  were  thirty  deaths.  Finally,  in  order  to 
arrest  the  fearful  scourge,  the  planter  had  to  move  out  of 
bis  cabins  entirely,  putting  his  decimated  force  under  hast- 
ily-built bowers  in  the  woods.  On  the  plantation  above 
us  seven,  out  of  a  force  of  twenty,  died. 

Thus  we  were  surrounded  by  this  fatal  plague.  As  often 
as  a  death  occurred,  the  plantation  bell  would  ring  out  its 
funeral  note,  and  almost  every  hour  during  this  brief,  but 
terrible  ]Deriod,  its  mournful  echo  sounded  in  our  ears. 
There  were  no  long  funeral  ceremonies  now — no  praying 
over  the  dead  at  night;  there  was  the  death-rattle  in  the 
throat ;  then  the  blanket  wrapped  around  the  yet  warm 
corpse,  then  this  was  placed  in  the  cart,  trundled  off,  and 
deposited  in  the  wide,  gaping  mouth  of  the  daily  extended 
trench. 

Day  after  day  we  waited  in  dread  expectation  that 
Hebron  would  also  be  smitten  with  the  plague.  It  could 
hardly  be  otherwise.  The  cholera  was  in  the  air.  It  sur- 
rounded us.  Our  escape  from  it  would  be  a  miracle.  In 
the  meantime,  however,  we  resorted  to  extreme  measures 
to  ward  it  off,  not  expecting  to  do  this,  but  hoping  at  least 
to  mitigate  the  force  of  its  attack.  "We  purified  every 
part  of  our  quarters,  by  the  free  use  of  lime,  white-wash- 


CHOLERA.  351 

ing  our  cabins  inside ;  prohibited  all  but  river  water  for 
drinking  purposes;  compelled  the  negroes  to  wash  their 
bodies  ;  watched  to  see  that  no  speared  fish  or  unwholesome 
meats  were  eaten — and  so,  day  after  day  passed  without  a 
case  on  our  plantation,  until  the  epidemic  finally  ran  its 
course  in  the  neighborhood,  and  left  us  untouched. 

We  were  profoundly  thankful  at  our  escape.  It  now 
seemed,  for  the  first  time,  that  a  kind  Providence  was 
smiling  upon  our  undertaking.  Here  was  a  distinct  re- 
ward for  the  honest  and  earnest  effort  we  had  put  forth  in 
behalf  of  our  laborers.  "We  had  encountered  many  difficul- 
ties and  misfortunes  up  to  this  time  ;  but  now  a  dreaded 
plague  had  passed  over  us — this  was  the  first  bow  of  prom- 
ise in  our  sky. 

"I  feel  as  if  I  had  just  passed  through  a  fearful  battle, 
where  my  comrades  had  all  fallen,"  said  Dobson,with  emo- 
tion; '•  only  consider  the  mortality  of  this  neighborhood, 
and  then  think  of  our  escape." 

A  singular  feature  of  this  epidemic  was  its  reception  by 
the  negroes.  Why  did  they  not  seek  to  escape  it  by  flight  ? 
It  mowed  them  down,  as  I  have  related,  and  yet  not  one 
ever  attempted  to  run  away  from  it — this,  too,  while  it  is 
said  that  they  take  great  fright  at  the  approach  of  yellow 
fever,  to  which  they  are  not  at  all  susceptible. 


CHAPTER  LXII. 

NEGRO   DISTRUST. 


Our  lights  for  the  destruction  of  the  army -worm  miller 
having  proved  a  failure,  and  therefore  been  abandoned,  and 
the  further  cultivation  of  our  crop  being  at  an  end,  our  la- 
borers in  the  field  would  now  be  without  employment  un- 


352  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

til  the  second  crop  of  the  worms  appeared,  when  they 
would  resume  their  paddles  and  renew  the  war  of  exter- 
mination. 

The  cultivation  of  the  crop  ceases  generally  about  the 
middle  of  July.  The  picking  season  opens  about  the  1st 
of  September.  Thus  there  are  six  weeks  of  comparative 
rest,  when  Northern  farmers  are  at  their  harvest.  Our 
busiest  season  is  during  the  picking  of  the  crop,  and  it  is 
at  its  height  from  October  to  February.  Scarcely  is  the 
old  crop  off,  before  plowing  for  the  new  commences.  Fre- 
quently picking  of  the  old  and  plowing  for  the  new  crop 
are  carried  on  in  the  same  field.  From  this  it  will  be  seen 
that  there  is  absolutely  no  period  of  rest  in  the  cotton 
region,  except  this  midsummer  season.  This  is  the  period 
of  inclement  heat — when  the  dog-star  rages — and  wisely 
has  Providence  arranged  it  as  a  time  for  rest,  just  as  mid- 
winter is  the  period  of  comparative  rest  for  the  farmers 
of  the  North. 

It  is  interesting  to  remark  that  the  crop  of  cotton  is 
plowed,  planted,  and  in  part  cultivated,  during  a  season  of 
moderate  temperature,  and  that  the  season  for  gathering 
the  crop — which,  as  I  have  stated,  although  not  hard  work 
in  itself,  is  much  the  most  pressing  duty  of  the  year — oc- 
curs at  a  time  when  the  thermometer  does  not  val-^^' 
much  from  an  average  of  70°.  It  would  be  difficult  to 
imagine  a  more  delightful  temperature  than  this.  In  fact, 
the  only  discomforts  during  the  picking  season  are  towards 
its  close,  from  cold  rains  and  the  frosts,  which  chill  the 
fingers  of  the  pickers.  There  are  certain  duties  to  be-per- 
formed  during  this  midsummer  period.  The  wood  for  gin- 
ning the  crop  has  to  be  cut  and  hauled  to  the  gin-house,  as 
well  as  that  for  the  winter  use  of  the  planter  and  his  labor- 
ers. This  is  a  time  when  the  swampy  roads  through  the 
woods  have  thoroughly  dried  out,  thus  leaving  them  in 
good  condition  for  hauling  the  wood,  whereas,  in  winter, 
after  the  annual  rains  have  set  in,  the  roads  are  well-nigh 


NEGRO   DISTRUST.  353 

impassable.  Besides,  after  the  picking  season  has  opened, 
there  is  no  time  to  do  any  thing  else.  The  manufacture 
of  baskets  for  the  picked  cotton  is  another  duty  belonging 
to  the  men  at  this  period,  while  the  women  make  the  pick- 
ing-sacks from  heavy  Osnaberg.  The  difficulty  of  oversee- 
ing these  employments,  to  secure  an  honest  day's  work,  was 
a  matter  of  solicitude.  My  policy  had  been  to  put  the  la- 
borers on  their  honor,  llaving  no  overseer,  we  were  en- 
tirely in  their  hands.  To  raise  their  standard,  and  make 
them  efficient,  without  a  watch-dog  supervision,  was  my  aim. 
I  offered  to  job  the  work,  naming  seventy-five  cents  a  cord 
for  wood,  and  fifty  cents  apiece  for  baskets,  but  there 
seemed  a  disposition  to  dicker  with  me.  The  negroes  evi- 
dently distrusted  me.  My  white  fixce  was  at  a  discount.  I 
had  not  gained  their  confidence.  Clearly  this  feeling  of 
distrust  was  not  to  be  rooted  out  in  a  few  months  of  even 
perfectly  fair  treatment.  Finally  I  said,  "  Name  a  price 
yourselves  ;"  and  they  went  to  hold  counsel  over  it.  Ee- 
turning,  shortly,  one  of  them  said  that  he  and  his  partner 
would  cut  twenty-five  cords  of  wood  for  ten  dollars,  which 
was  the  very  best  they  could  do  ;  that  they  could  not  begin 
to  do  it  at  my  figure  of  seventy-five  cents  a  cord — they 
would  like  to  accommodate  us,  but  could  not  afford  it. 
After  which  he  looked  wise,  as  did  his  companions. 

"  Are  you  all  willing  to  cut  at  that  figure,"  I  asked. 

"  Yes,  sah  !  "     "Yes,  sah  !  "  came  from  all  sides. 

"  All  right ;  it  is  a  bargain." 

"  I  kuow'd  de  boss  'd  come  to  our  price,"  I  heard  one 
negro  say  to  another,  with  a  knowing  wink. 

"  Yes,  de  boss  know  'd  mighty  well  six  bits  aint  no  price 
for  cuttin'  a  co'd  o'  wood,"  was  the  reply. 

*'  Dat  's  so,  sho',"  piped  in  another,  in  an  undertone. 

"  What  will  you  make  the  baskets  for?  "  I  asked. 

"  I  '11  git  y'  up  six  for  three  dollars,"  called  out  an  old, 
white- wooled  bundle  of  rags.     Several  others  were  ready 


354  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

to  do  the  same,  so  that  we  at  once  had  as  many  basket- 
makers  as  we  wanted.     I  did  not  say  a  word  to  the  negroes 
about  having  underbid  us  on  the  wood,  resolving  to  keep 
quiet  until  their  job  was  done ;  when  they  came  for  their 
pay  I  would  read  them  a  lesson  on  distrust. 

Those  selected  for  the  respective  tasks  of  wood-chopping 
and  basket-making  returned  to  their  work,  happy  at  hav- 
ing got  their  own  bargain. 

I  had  no  trouble  in  fixing  a  price  with  the  women  for 
making  the  picking-sacks.  I  soon  found  that  it  was  much 
easier  to  deal  with  them  than  with  the  men.  "Was  this  be- 
cause their  sex  shielded  them,  even  when  skives,  and  that, 
therefore,  they  had  not  learned  the  lessan  of  distrust,  as 
hud  the  men  ? 


CHAPTEE  LXni. 


ANTS   VS.  CHRYSALIS. 


As  Mr,  Sinton  had  predicted,  in  just  twenty  days  from 
the  appearance  of  the  first  crop  of  the  army-worm,  the 
second  croj)  began  to  show  itself 

Scarcely,  therefore,  were  our  jobs  of  wood-chopping, 
basket-making  and  sack-making  completed  before  we  had 
to  resume  the  destruction  of  the  worm.  There  was  no 
trouble  in  finding  it  this  time,  and  in  consequence,  get- 
ting over  the  fields  was  necessarily  slow.  The  paddles 
kept  up  a  constant  clapping  sound,  as  they  came  together, 
crushing  this  enemy  of  the  cotton-plant,  and  a  peculiar 
pungent  odor  prevaded  the  atmosphere  in  the  immediate 
neighborhood,  as  the  result  of  the  wholesale  slaughter. 

This  second  crop  of  worms  was  as  active  as  the  first  had 
been  sluggish.     It  was  evidently  determined  to  make  the 


ANTS   VS.  CHRYSALIS.  355 

most  of  its  brief  span  of  life.  One  morning  the  new-born 
babe  would  cotne  up  from  its  birth-place  under  the  leaf, 
and  lie  on  top  of  it — a  tiny  thing,  no  larger  than  the  half 
of  a  cambric  needle — while,  at  the  end  of  the  third  day, 
there  would  be  the  full-grown  worm,  about  the  size  of  an 
inch  of  slate  pencil. 

This  generation  did  no  traveling  from  stalk  to  stalk, 
either  finding  in  its  original  plant  enough  to  feed  on,  from 
the  time  of  its  birth,  or  a  premature  death  between  the 
paddles. 

"  There  is  certainly  nothing  hap-hazard  in  the  move- 
ment of  the  worm,"  Dobson  said.  "  I  had  supposed  he 
came,  suddenly  and  unexpectedly,  in  great  numbers,  and 
full-grown,  moving  in  army-order  from  field  to  field,  de- 
stroying the  crop  as  he  went.  But  from  what  we  have 
seen,  it  is  plain  his  coming  is  as  systematic  as  is  that  of 
human  kind,  hence,  I  suppose,  the  term  army — for  1  see 
nothing  else  in  his  movement  which  would  make  that  name 
appropriate." 

"  I  wonder  if  the  coming  of  all  this  insect  life  about  us 
here  is  thus  regular?  "  I  asked. 

'•  I  suppose  it  must  be  so." 

"  I  had  never  thought  of  the  thing  quite  in  that  light, 
but  of  course  such  is  the  fact.  How  true  it  is,  that  '  God 
numbers  the  hairs  of  our  head,  and  not  a  sparrow  falls 
without  His  notice.'  This  thought  changes  'my  feelino- 
towards  these  horrible  pests  from  disgust  to  awe.  Only 
think  of  it  !  from  this  it  would  seem  that  all  these  innu- 
merable, variously-shaped  things,  which  frequently  look 
like  hap-hazard  clippings  from  woolen  cloths  of  different 
colors,  that  are  now  flying  around  our  lamp,  from  the  size 
of  a  pin-head  to  that  of  a  beetle,  have  their  birth,  span  of 
life,  and  are  no  more  the  results  of  accident  than  are  we." 

"  You  remember  the  buff'alo-gnats,"  said  Dobson,  ''  that 
came  last  May — continuing  some  three  weeks— and  then 


356  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

suddenly  disappearing  under  the  hot  rays  of  the  June  sun, 
which  Uncle  "Wash  said  burned  them  up?" 

"  Yes,  indeed ;  I  shall  not  soon  forget  them,  and  how 
they  used  to  bite  our  hands  and  faces,  but  especially  our 
necks  behind  our  ears,  raising  great  blisters — at  once  so 
lazy  and  so  greedy  that,  when  we  felt  the  sting,  they  allowed 
us  to  put  our  fingers  on  them  and  pick  them  off,  and  so  soft 
and  tender  were  they  that  they  went  all  to  pieces  in  the 
operation.  And  I  remember  how  Billy  used  to  grease  the 
mules  in  and  around  their  ears,  between  their  legs  and  on 
their  breasts  with  a  preparation  of  lard  and  coal-oil,  to 
keep  these  gnats  from  stinging  them  to  death,  as  is  not  un- 
frequently  the  case  ;  and  then  how  he  anointed  the  ex- 
posed parts  of  his  own  body  with  the  same,  thus  going 
about  with  a  greased  look  and  an  odor  of  coal-oil.  He- 
member  the  buffalo-gnats?  I  guess  I  do — though  why 
'buffalo  '  I  can  not  see,  looking,  as  they  do,  like  the  tiniest 
flies,  unless  it  is  because  of  the  size  of  their  bite." 

"  Well,  these  gnats  are  said  to  be  unfailing  in  their  an- 
nual visitation,  coming  about  the  same  time  each  year, 
lasting  about  three  weeks — though  this  depends  a  good 
deal  upon  the  heat  which  is  required  to  scald  them — and 
then  suddenly  disappearing." 

"  There  is  one  thing  to  be  said  in  flwor  of  both  the  army- 
worm  and  buffalo-gnat.  They  do  their  work  and  then  dis- 
appear. There  are  the  mosquito  and  the  red-bug  that  hang 
on  through  the  season.  I  wish  they  would  crowd  their 
stay  in  as  short  a  space.  I  think  of  all  the  insects  that 
prey  upon  us  here,  the  red-bug  is  the  worst.  He  is  invis- 
ible to  the  naked  eye,  and  thus  small,  you  can  not  feel  him 
crawling  on  your  body,  and  so  j)ick  him  off.  He  is  cour- 
ageous, traveling  as  he  does  up  your  sleeves,  pantaloons, 
and  down  your  neck,  until  he  finds  his  favorite  spots  on 
your  body — among  others  in  your  arm-pits — and  then,  after 
he  has  bored  his  way  into  your  body,  for  the  first  time  you 
feel  him." 


ANTS   VS.  CHRYSALIS.  357 

"  Yes,  I  think  you  do  feel  him,"  said  Dobson,  scratching. 
*'  What  satisfaction  it  can  be  to  these  atoms  to  sift  them- 
selves on  your  body  from  the  leaves  that  you  strike  while 
passing  a  tree  or  bush,  or  the  grass  you  "walk  through,  and 
make  at  once  shroud,  coffin  and  grave  of  their  burrow  (for 
you  know  they  never  bite  but  once,  when  it  is  a  blister  to 
you  and  death  to  them),  is  beyond  my  comprehension. 
And  where  they  keep  all  their  bite  is  more  than  I  can 
conceive.  I  sometimes  think  they  must  be  made  of  springs, 
drawn  into  the  utmost  tension,  and  when  they  get  into  your 
body,  somehow  the  spring  suddenly  flies  out,  so  that  what 
entered  your  skin  an  atom,  is  instantly  enlarged  to  the  size 
of  a  bumble-bee,  with  a  combination  of  its  sting  and  the 
bite  of  a  flea." 

"  The  bite  of  the  red-bug  is  not  so  much  as  is  the  poison 
in  its  little  body, — for  there  must  be  poison,  else  it 
would  not  swell  and  fester  as  it  does.  But,  to  get  back  to 
our  subject,  I  wonder  how  the  army-worm  winters  over. 
Let  us  ride  up  to  Mr.  Sinton's  and  get  his  views  on  the 
subject." 

"Agreed,"  replied  Dobson. 

We  found  Mr.  Sinton  at  home,  and,  like  us,  engaged  in 
battling  with  the  army -worm.  In  answer  to  our  inquiry 
he  said  :  "  When  the  third,  and  last  crop  of  the  array - 
worm  comes,  they  eat  the  leaves  off  the  cotton.  Of  course, 
we  hope,  this  year,  for  the  sake  of  our  crop,  that  the  third 
generation  will  leave  that  task  to  the  fourth,  but  usually 
the  third  generation  does  the  work.  This  crop  are  travel- 
ers—that is,  they  crawl  from  stalk  to  stalk,  and  sometimes 
from  field  to  field,  not  stopping  until  the  cotton  leaves  are 
all  eaten  off.  Thus  there  are  no  leaves  left  under  which 
they  can  go  into  the  chrysalis  state  to  hatch  out  the  fourth 
crop  of  millers.  Feeding  exclusively  on  cotton,  as  they 
do,  this  crop  of  worms  is  larger  than  the  supply  of  feed,  so 
that  many  of  the  later  comers  are  starved  to  death.  A  few 
crawl  off  into  the  woods,  ditches  and  under-growth,  and 


358  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

hide  themselves  in  rotten  logs  and  various  other  places, 
where  they  go  into  the  chrysalis  state,  in  which  condition 
they  remain,  subject  to  destruction  by  storms  or  the  sever- 
ity of  the  winter,  until  the  warm  weather  of  the  following 
season,  when  those  left  alive  hatch  out  as  millers,  and  thus 
is  started  another  year's  croj).  If  the  winter  is  severe  but 
few  survive,  in  which  case  it  takes  more  generations  to 
bring  them  up  to  destructive  numbers,  by  which  time  the 
crop  is  made,  and  so  the  worm  infliction  is  escaped  for  that 
season.  It  is  because  of  this  that  the  ditches  should  all  be 
thoroughly  cleaned,  the  undergrowth  cut  away,  and  every 
thing  burned  up  early  in  the  spring,  thus  destroying  the 
chrysalis,  which  otherwise  would  hatch  out  millers.  When 
the  country  is  cleared  up,  there  will  no  longer  be  sufficient 
hiding-places  for  the  chrysalis  to  winter  over,  and  so  there 
will  be  no  more  destruction  of  cotton  by  the  army-worm. 
Until  then  he  is  likely  to  visit  us  annually,  either  to  a 
greater  or  less  extent,  depending  upon  the  severity  of  the 
winter.  Before  the  war  we  kept  things  neat,  and  so  there 
were  but  few  hiding-places  for  the  chrysalis,  and,  therefore, 
we  were  seldom  annoyed  by  the  worm." 

"  You  say  the  third  generation  are  travelers.  Do  they 
move  with  any  regularity  ? — and  on  account  of  this  are  they 
called  army-worms  ?  "'  Dobson  inquired. 

"  Oh  !  no;  as  the  saying  is,  it  is  '  every  one  for  himself, 
and  the  devil  take  the  hindmost.'  I  never  saw  any  two 
army-worms  alongside  of  each  other,  moving  in  the  same 
direction.  There  is  not  the  least  possible  concert  of  action? 
except  that  each  one  is  struggling  to  get  his  fill  of  the,  to 
him,  delicious  cotton -leaf  before  he  dies.  And  while  the 
crop  is  being  eaten,  there  is  a  sound  at  dusk,  when  they 
are  busiest,  like  that  which  at  some  distance  pigs  make  in 
drinking  swill,  and  the  air  is  filled  with  a  strong  smell  of 
the  bleeding  leaves.  I  don't  know  why  they  should  be 
called  army-worms,"  !Mr.  Sinton  added,  laughing,  "  unless 
it  is  that  they  do  n't  show  the  least  resemblance  to  the 


ANTS   VS.  CHRYSALIS.  359 

movements  of  an  army,  unless  in  that  of  a  disgraceful 
rout,  or  in  a  victory  where  every  soldier  is  going  for  pil- 
lage." 

"Did  you  ever  come  U2:)0n  a  chrysalis  in  the  winter?  "  I 
asked. 

"Yes,  in  tearing  down  a  cabin,  or  moving  some  old 
building,  I  have  frequently  found  them  hidden  away  in  the 
decayed  part  of  a  log,  and  picking  them  up  could  feel  them 
squirm  between  my  fingers,  showing  that  there  was  life ; 
and  sometimes  I  have  found  only  the  shell  of  the  chrysalis* 
showing  that  its  hiding  had  been  of  no  avail. 

"  There  is  another  destructive  enemy  to  the  cotton,  called 
the  boll-worm  This  worm  only  operates  on  the  boll,  bor- 
ing its  way  into  its  very  heart,  and  stinging  it  to  death  ; 
attacking  only  the  half-grown  bolls,  these  being  the  tender- 
est.  In  this  way  the  entire  fruit  on  a  stalk  may  be  de- 
stroyed, while  the  stalk  itself  continues  growing.  They  are 
produced  substantially  as  is  the  army-worm,  but  winter 
over  differently,  crawling  into  the  cracks  of  the  dry  cotton- 
stalks.  On  this  account  cotton-stalks  should  always  be 
pulled  up  by  the  roots  and  burned,  instead  of  broken  down 
and  plowed  under. 

"  Have  you  noticed  any  of  the  boll-worms  yet  ?" 

"  Yes,  sir  ;  there  are  a  few  of  them  at  work  in  our  fields." 

We  fell  in  love  newly  with  Mr.  Sinton's  plantation.  His 
work  was  as  nearly  complete  as  the  imperfectly  working  ne- 
gro could  make  it.  There  was  consummate  management  dis- 
played every -where  on  his  place.  Evidently  his  knowledge 
of  cotton  was  perfect.  It  would  be  impossible  to  express  in 
words  our  admiration  of  this  man,  not  only  as  a  man,  but 
as  a  cotton -grower.  As  his  statements  indicate,  he  was  as 
familiar  with  the  army-worm  as  the  most  thoroughly  in- 
formed stock-raiser  could  be  with  his  cattle. 

We  returned  home  disgusted  with  Hebron,  its  manage- 
ment and  our  ignorance,  and  pushed  our  worm  destruc- 
tion with  a  desperate  energy,  as  if  that  would  give  us 


360  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

healthy  growing  cotton-fields,  clear  of  grass  and  weeds, 
cleaned-out  ditches,  and  tidy  ditch-banks,  such  as  we  had 
just  seen  at  Mr.  Sinton's. 

By  the  time  we  had  destroyed  this  crop  of  worms,  what 
with  the  nibbling  of  the  leaves  by  the  worm,  and  the  tearing 
and  crushing  of  them  by  the  paddles,  our  fields  had  an  ex- 
ceedingly ragged  look.  It  was  as  if  they  had  been  smitten 
by  a  hail-storm. 

Desirous  of  fully  informing  ourselves,  and  verifying  Mr. 
Sinton's  statements  as  to  the  worm,  Dobson  pulled  off  some 
leaves,  which  had  on  their  under-side  some  millers'  eggs 
(they  always  lay  their  eggs  on  that  side  of  the  leaf),  about 
quarter  the  size  of  a  grain  of  mustard-seed,  and  looking 
like  little  warts.  These  he  took  to  our  cabin,  and  put  them 
under  a  glass,  when  we  saw  some  of  the  eggs  hatch,  the 
worms  grow  to  full  size,  and  then  each  go  into  the  chrys- 
alis. Ey  supplying  them  with  fresh  cotton-leaves  each  day, 
we  could  see  how  they  fed,  and,  having  the  chrysalis  under 
our  eye,  we  would  know  the  exact  period  it  took  to  hatch 
the  miller. 

One  morning,  upon  looking  at  the  chrysalis,  I  found  a 
small  army  of  ants  preying  uj)on  them,  and  upon  examina- 
tion found  they  had  actually  eaten  through  the  shell,  and 
were  feeding  on  the  embryo  miller.  A  number  of  the 
chrysalids  had  actually  been  destroyed.  The  ants  had 
found  their  way  under  the  glass,  through  a  crack  in  the 
wood. 

I  at  once  changed  the  location  of  the  remaining  chrys- 
alids, and  fixed  the  glass  so  that  the  ants  could  not  possibly 
get  under  it  again.  But  here  was  a  discovery.  The  coun- 
try was  full  of  ants.  Why,  having  found  our  chrysalids 
with  difficulty,  were  they  not  ravaging  upon  those  on  the 
cotton-stalks  in  the  field,  which  they  could  easily  reach  ? 
No  sooner  had  the  thought  suggested  itself,  than  I  hurried 
out  to  make  examination. 

"  God  bless  the  ants  !"  I  exclaimed,  involuntarily,  for 


ANTS   VS.    CHRYSALIS.  361 

here  they  were,  actually  at  work  on  the  chrysalids,  which 
had  escaped  the  observation  of  our  laborers.  I  could 
easily  trace  them,  by  their  line  of  march,  up  and  down  the 
cotton-stalk,  where  their  vigilance  had  detected  a  concealed 
chrysalis,  and  which  they  had  attacked,  broken  through 
the  shell,  and  were  busily  feeding  upon  its  vitals.  And 
it  seemed,  indeed,  to  be  a  grand  feast  for  them.  I  eagerly 
examined  stalk  after  stalk  where  the  ants  were,  only  to 
find  a  repetition  of  my  first  discovery.  They  were  on  a 
single  errand,  that  day,  to  fill  themselves  out  of  the  army- 
w»rm  chrysalis. 

Searching  closely,  I  found  quite  a  number  which  they 
had  already  emptied.  The  work  was  apparently  being 
done  with  a  faithfulness  attesting  the  proverbial  industry 
of  the  ant.  I  remembered  how  often,  in  the  sandy 
portion  of  our  land,  I  had  seen  our  plows  sweep  ruthlessly 
through  the  ant-hills,  tearing  to  pieces  in  a  moment  their 
homes,  which  had  cost  them  so  much  labor.  In  sight  of 
their  present  service,  my  conscience  smote  me.  I  grew 
childish,  and  found  myself  saying  :  "  Dear,  kind  ants,  this 
is  the  way  you  repay  us  for  breaking  up  your  nests.  Well, 
it  shall  never  be  done  again.  Go  ahead,  now,  and  make  a 
grand  ant's-nest  of  Hebron,  if  you  want  to."  And  then  I 
took  up  one  in  my  hand  to  fondle  it,  and  it  bit  me  of 
course  ! — which  brought  me  to  my  senses,  and  I  hurried  off 
home  to  share  with  Dobson  my  discovery. 

"  Eureka  !'  I  shouted  to  him,  as  I  came  up  to  our  cabin, 
and  saw  him  sitting  on  the  gallery. 

"  What  is  the  matter,  Mr.  Harding,"  inquired  Dobson, 
after  he  had  slapped  away  two  or  three  times,  very  delib- 
erately, at  a  shy  but  apparently  very  hungry  musquito, 
which  managed  each  time  to  elude  the  blow,  but  as  often 
renewed  the  attack. 

"  Matter  !  why  the  country  is  swarming  with  a  deadly 
16 


362  A    YEAR    OF    WRECK. 

enemy  to  the  army-worm  chrysalis,  and  a  general  attack 
is  now  being  made." 

"  What  do  you  mean  ?"'  inquired  the  General,  a  little 
anxiously,  still  not  percipitately,  but  with  a  look  which 
said,  "  Is  the  man  crazy  ?" 

Then,  as  coherently  as  I  could  in  my  excited  condition, 
I  explained  to  Dobson  what  the  reader  already  knows, 
showing  him,  for  verification,  his  own  dilapidated  chrysal- 
ids.  "  Only  think — these  ants  that  we  've  been  crying  out 
against  all  summer,  because  they  w^ould  get  into  our  brown 
sugar,  are  to  be  our  salvation.  After  this  I  love — a  red 
bug  ;  I  love — a  musquito  ;  yes,  I  love — a  buffalo-gnat. 
They  will  prove  to  be  of  service  yet.  I  '11  never  say  again 
that  either  the  smallest,  most  venomous  or  disgusting  things 
with  life  in  it,  was  not  made  for  a  purpose.  Hurrah  !  I 
am  in  love  with  the  country,  because  it  is  full  of  insects — 
especially  ants.  If  we  ever  get  rich  here,  it  will  be  due  to 
the  ant,  and  if  then  we  have  a  coat-of-arms,  it  shall  show 
two  of  them  rampant." 

"Hold  on,  there,  Mr.  Harding;  wait  till  the  time  comes 
for  the  millers  to  hatch  out,  and  if,  then,  after  all  the  feast- 
ing of  the  ants,  there  are  not  still  enough  millers  left  to 
lay  enough  eggs  to  hatch  worms  enough  to  destroy  our 
crop,  I  '11  join  jo\x  in  praise  of  all  insects — especially  ants, 
as  you  say." 

"  Go  out  in  the  fields,  and  see  for  yourself.  General,  and 
if  you  do  n't  return  feeling,  as  I  do,  that  it  is  the  first 
thorough  work  we  have  had  done  this  year,  I  shall  be 
disappointed." 

"  If  there  is  anj'  thing  in  it,  it  follows  that  while  the 
gods  may  not  help  those  who  don't  help  themselves,  the 
ants  do — because,  of  course,  they  are  in  our  neighbors' 
fields,  who  have  refused  to  turn  a  hand  toward  the  de- 
struction of  the  army-worm,  and  they  will  be  benefited 
equally  with  us.  But,"  continued  Dobson,  "  I  must  go  and 
take  a  look  for  m3"self " 


WINE.  363 

"Yes,"  I  said,  "the  sanguine  member  of  the  partnership 
is  convinced ;  go  and  sec  bow  it  impresses  the  conserva- 
tive member." 

"And  when  we  bave  compared  statements,  we  will 
strike  an  average,"  Dobson  added,  good  naturedly,  "which 
will  be  near  the  truth." 

The  General  returned  from  bis  inspection  quite  im- 
i:)ressed,  saying  :  "  It  certainly  looks  as  if  they  were  doing 
thorough  work.  But  it  is  all  very  odd  ;  I  can  hardly  real- 
ize it.  What  a  fine  thing  it  would  be,  if,  after  all,  the  ant 
were  to  be  our  salvation." 

"Pretty  good  for  you,  3Ir.  Cautious.  The  average, 
then  is ?" 

"  There  is  strong  hope,"  answered  Dobson. 

"  Adopted,"  was  my  reply. 

Here,  then  was  a  double  dependence — on  the  work  of  the 
paddles  and  that  of  the  ants.  It  must  be  confessed,  at  that 
moment  we  both  felt  that  there  was  more  to  be  expected 
from  the  latter  than  the  former — first,  because  of  its 
thoroughness  ;  next,  because  it  must  be  general.  It  was  a 
slender  thread  to  hang  a  hope  upon — the  help  of  the  ants — 
and,  compared  to  our  out-start,  what  a  fall ! 


CHAPTEE  LXIV. 

WINE. 

Notwithstanding  General  Dobson's  indoor  life,  and  use 
of  an  umbrella,  he  began  to  look  sallow.  It  was  clear  that 
he  was  feeling  the  enervating  influence  of  the  climate.  I 
thought  him  a  good  singer;  though  when  I  told  his  wife 
so,  on  her  return  in  the  fall,  she  laughed,  saying : 


364  A   YEAR   OP   WRECK. 

"  I  think  you  must  have  been  easy  to  satisfy,  if  Dob- 
son's  singing  pleased  you." 

He  was  always  willing  to  sing  for  me,  and,  sometimes, 
after  we  had  ourselves  tucked  away  under  the  bars  for  the 
night,  with  the  lights  out,  I  would  call  out : 

"  If  5^ou  are  not  too  sleepy,  sing  something." 

My  favorite  song  was  "  Benny  Haven,"  which,  to  my 
mind,  the  General  sang  with  fine  feeling.  He  said  he  was 
of  Scotch-Irish  descent,  which  perhaps  accounted  for  his 
throwing  so  much  soul  into  it. 

At  night  the  swarming  mosquitos  joined  in  with  their 
notes,  only  the  key  was  jerky,  easing  off,  as  it  did,  when 
they  were  about  to  settle  for  a  bite  ;  and  coming  out  with 
an  angry  "  ping,"  like  the  sound  of  a  tuning-fork,  when 
they  were  suddenly  driven  from  their  feast. 

After  the  sallow  appearance  in  his  face,  there  soon  came 
a  quaver  in  his  voice  when  he  sang.  Sadly  but  eloquently 
did  this  tell  of  the  serious  strain  to  which  a  summer  in 
this  swamj^-country  subjects  one. 

"Somebody  else  I  know  of  is  getting  a  weak  voice,"  I 
said,  laughingly,  remembering  the  fun  the  General  had 
been  making  of  mine. 

"Yes,  indeed,"  he  replied,  trying  to  clear  his  throat,  as 
if  he  thought  the  trouble  there  ;  "  it  looks  as  if  the  music 
would  be  left  to  the  birds,  frogs,  and  insects,  if  indeed  they 
do  n't  lose  their  voices,  too,  before  this  long  summer  is 
over.  It  may  be  fancy,  but  it  seems  to  me  that  their  an- 
noying notes  are  already  weakening." 

"I  wish  that  could  happen,  except  to  the  mocking-bird. 
His  note  is  as  welcome  to  me  as  your  singing.  I  think  we 
could  dispense  with  all  the  rest,  especially  the  owls  and 
turtle-doves." 

"  Include  the  mosquitos  and  frogs  by  all  means.  Thanks 
for  your  compliment  in  classing  me  with  the  mocking- 
bird." 

"  Do  you  know,"  Dobson  said,  after  a  moment  of  silence, 


WINE.  365 

"  I  have  been  thinking  that  some  light  kind  of  wine  would 
be  a  good  thing  for  us  as  a  daily  tonic — something  to  drink 
after  our  meals." 

"  Wine  and  bean-soup,  bah  !  "  I  replied  with  my  squeak- 
ing voice,  and  with  all  the  disgust  which  even  the  thought 
of  bean-soup  excited  in  me. 

"  We  should  probably  enjoy  our  bean-soup,  if  we  could 
have  our  systems  toned  up  by  wine.  Claret,  you  know,  is 
the  great  drink  here.  I  am  of  the  opinion,  notwithstand- 
ing Mr.  Sinton's  views,  that  there  are  times  when  we  re- 
quire something  stronger  than  coffee.  I  think  such  is  our 
case  now." 

"  It  is  customary  to  regard  wine  as  a  luxury ;  that  is, 
wine  for  a  steady  diet.  You  know,  General,  how  low  we 
are  in  funds.  If  we  can  get  along  without  it,  I  think  we 
should  try  and  do  so.  I  really  do  n't  know  where  the 
money  would  come  from  to  pay  for  it." 

"  1  have  thought  of  that  too  ;  but  before  a  great  while 
the  picking  season  will  commence,  and  shortly  thereafter 
we  shall  have  cotton  to  ship.  We  shall  then  need  a  mer- 
chant. Why  not  select  him  now,  and  order  a  cask  of 
claret — he  to  pay  himself  for  the  same  out  of  our  cotton 
shipments." 

"  In  other  words,  you  propose  to  ask  an  advance  of  a 
cask  of  claret  from  some  New  Orleans  cotton  factor  on  our 
prosjoective  crop." 

"  Yes,  that  was  my  idea.  It  can't  cost  a  great  deal ; 
perhaps  not  over  the  value  of  a  bale  of  cotton." 

"  Well,  go  ahead  ;  but  it  is  scarcely  practicing  as  we 
preach.  You  know  the  fun  we  've  made  at  several  of  our 
neighbors  who,  it  was  understood,  had  to  borrow  money  to 
commence  their  crops,  and  who,  according  to  estimates, 
have  spent  only  about  sixty-six  per  cent,  of  their  loans  for 
that  purpose,  the  rest  going  for  poker,  whisky,  and  fast 
livintr.  And  then  there  was  that  half-starved  negro,  who 
came  along  the  other  day,  and  to  whom  we  gave  the  job- 


366  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

of  cleaning-up  around  the  gin-house,  to  be  paid  for  in  ra- 
tions, and  who  insisted  in  spending  seventy-five  cents  of  the 
amount  in  whisky,  leaving  only  twenty-five  cents  for  meat 
and  meal.  These  facts,  as  we  thought,  illustrated  the  im- 
providence of  the  Southerner  and  his  late  slave.  And  yet 
you  propose  to  secure  a  factor  in  New  Orleans,  and  com- 
mence by  asking  him  to  loan  us  money  with  which  to  pur- 
chase wine  ! — this  too,  in  view  of  our  sorry  crop-prospect, 
and  of  our  second  payment,  of  §29,700,  due  in  February, 
on  Hebron. 

"  Of  course  we  can  get  the  wine.  Any  factor  will  loan 
us  the  value  of  a  cask  of  claret,  with  our  crop  as  a  pledge ; 
but  if  wo  are  going  to  borrow  even  this  small  sum,  we  had 
best,  for  sake  of  eff'ect,  practice  a  little  deception — spend  it 
for  a  legitimate  purchase,  say  pork,  and  then  draw  from 
our  slender  purse  to  pay  for  the  claret.  We  do  n't  want 
the  firm  of  Dobson,  Harding  &  Co.  to  be  rated  '  doubtful,' 
as  it  would  be,  in  New  Orleans,  if  the  first  loan  it  asked 
for  was  to  purchase  claret." 

"  Oh,  I  think  you  are  over  sensitive,  Mr.  Harding.  I 
don't  believe  loans  are  criticised  in  that  way  in  New  Or- 
leans." 

"  Do  n't  doubt  it,  General ;  no  matter  how  rich  a  man 
may  be  reputed  to  be,  his  orders  are  taken  as  a  key  to  his 
ultimate  business  success — if  they  are  haj)-hazard,  and  for 
illegitimate  uses,  the  verdict  of  '  doubtful '  goes  against 
such  a  name,  and  in  nine  cases  out  of  ten  it  is  correct." 

"  But,  in  my  judgment,  we  need  the  wine,  and  therefore 
would  not  put  the  loan  to  illegitimate  use." 

"  That  is  very  well  to  say,  to  ease  one's  conscience — ^just 
as  those  by  whom  we  are  surrounded,  who  borrow  money 
and  spend  a  large  j)ortion  of  it  illegitimately,  say,  '  Oh,  we 
can't  do  without  whisky,  we  must  play  poker,  ride  on 
steamboats,  and  have  our  frolics  in  New  Orleans.  These 
make  our  life  and. happiness,  and  save  us  from  dull  times.' 
And  yet  such  a  life  is  none  the  less  the  road  alike  to  ruin 


WINE.  367 

and  bankruptcy.  The  theory  that  a  man  has  a  right  to 
do  as  ho  pleases  with  borrowed  money,  is  what  has  buried 
the  lands  in  the  South  under  a  mountain  of  mortgages. 
It  is  this  which  has  made  her  people  so  many  communities 
of  bankrupts.  The  war  did  not  load  New  Orleans  with 
her  twenty  millions  of  mortgages.  It  found  the  load  al- 
ready there.  From  what  1  was  told  by  an  English  banker 
at  Yicksburg,  when  I  was  down  there  after  labor,  I  am  sat- 
isfied that  the  smaller  half  of  this  indebtedness  went  to 
legitimate  uses ;  that,  in  fact,  the  debt  was  the  result  of 
years  of  illegitimate  expenditures — expenditures  com- 
menced with  quite  as  harmless  intentions,  and  as  many 
reasons  therefor,  as  you  now  have  for  our  proposed  pur- 
chase. You  know,  General,  it  is  the  first  false  step  that 
makes  the  others  easy." 

"  Yes,  I  know  that ;  but  do  n't  you  think  our  crop  will 
justify  this  single  extravagance,  if  you  choose  to  consider 
it  such,  and  leave  enough  for  our  second  payment  and  cur- 
rent expenses  another  year  ?  " 

"A  thousand  times,  no.  Besides,  what  answer  do  you 
suppose  our  old  banker,  Mr.  Cooper,  would  make  if  you 
applied  to  him  for  a  loan  with  which  to  purchase  wine?" 

"I  suppose  he  would  tell  me,  if  I  hadn't  the  money  in 
hand  to  spare  from  my  business  to  purchase  wine,  I  had 
better  do  without  it,"  replied  Dobson,  laughingly. 

"  Precisely  so ;  he  would  refuse  you  the  loan,  at  the  same 
time  knowing  you  to  be  amply  responsible  for  the  amount 
sought,  and  then  he  would  ever  after  distrust  you  for  offer- 
ing to  borrow  money  for  such  a  purpose." 

"  Oh,  well,  that  is  in  the  North  ;  it  is  hardly  fair  to  com- 
pare the  two  sections." 

"That  is  just  to  the  point.  It  is  this  rule,  running 
through  business  in  the  North,  as  fixed  as  the  laws  of  the 
Medes — that  money  can  only  be  borrowed  for  legitimate 
uses,  and  that  it  must  be  put  to  such  uses  exclusively — 
which  has  made  the  North  a  success.    It  is  the  very  oppo- 


368  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

site  of  this  which  put  the  South  in  the  horrible  financial 
condition  in  which  the  war  found  it.  IRever,  never,  will 
the  South  be  a  financial  success,  so  long  as  the  planters 
here  can  pledge  their  crops  for  whisky,  poker,  fast  liv- 
ing, or  any  other  purpose  than  the  absolute  supplies  neces- 
sary to  make  a  crop,  which  of  course  include  legitimate 
family  expenses.  The  same  economy  and  business  rules 
are  required  here  to  make  a  financial  success  that  are  re- 
quired in  the  North.  It  is  the  same  dollar  which  you  bor- 
row, and  if  you  take  it  for  the  ostensible  purpose  of  cotton- 
raising,  and  use  only  thirty -three  cents  for  that,  wasting 
the  remaining  sixty-six,  those  thirty -three  cents  will  have 
to  earn  you  one  hundred  and  eight  cents  to  enable  you  to 
return  your  loan,  principal  and  interest.  At  the  end  of  the 
year  a  full  crop  of  cotton,  at  present  prices,  w^ould  do  this; 
but  where  is  your  full  crop  ?" 

"  I  regret  to  say,  it  is  not  on  Hebron,"  Dobson  replied, 
with  a  lengthening  face. 

"  No,  nor  any-where  else  in  the  South.  Cotton  is  high 
because  it  is  scarce.  We  know  now  that  it  is  not  a  crop 
that  grows  of  itself.  If  such  had  been  the  case,  your  esti- 
mate would  have  been  realized,  and  we  should  be  in  a  fair 
way  to  be  happy,  I  suppose.  But  I  tell  you,  General,  the 
more  I  see  of  cotton,  as  the  season  advances,  the  more  I 
am  satisfied  there  is  money  in  it.  No  such  sum  as  you 
figured,  of  course,"  I  said,  laughing  ruefully,  "but  a  rea- 
sonable amount,  with  the  same  economy  which  any  other 
legitimate  enterprise  requires. 

"  There  are  weeds  to  be  gotten  rid  of  elsewhere  than  in 
our  fields — they  are  in  the  hearts  and  habits  of  all  classes 
of  people  here.  Our  ditches  are  choked  up,  and  hence 
there  is  no  drainage  to  our  flat  plantations;  and  so  we 
have  stagnant  pools,  sickness,  death,  with  sour,  dead  land, 
producing  a  puny  crop.  There  are  white  ways  and  negro 
ways  that  must  be  mended,  at  the  same  time  that  our  ditches 
are  cleared  out,  before  success  will  come  to  us.     There  is  to 


WINE.  369 

be  no  realization  of  the  Dobson  scheme — at  least  this  year's 
estimate  "will  never  be  realized;  but,  if  vre  are  laying  some 
sort  of  a  foundation  for  the  future,  our  labor  will  not  have 
been  in  vain." 

''  You  'd  better  say,  erecting  a  mill, — because,  to  use  a  min- 
ing phrase,  the  wealth  of  this  country  does  not  now  lie  in 
nuggets,  to  be  gathered  in  rude  sluice-ways,  as  was  the 
case  during  the  war  when  it  was  full  of  cotton,  in  bales, 
worth  four  hundred  dollars  a-picce — but  it  is  in  quartz, 
and  has  to  be  crushed  out.  By  the  time  we  get  our  errors 
crushed  out,  and  correct  notions  crushed  into  us,  with  the 
weeds  removed  from  the  land,  I  fear  we  shall  bo  worn 
out."  As  Dobson  said  this,  his  face  became  still  more  pal- 
lid, as  if  even  the  thought  of  what  might  be  a  long  jour- 
ney made  him  tired. 

"  May  be  so  ;  but  I  am  desperately  in  earnest  in  my  de- 
sire that,  meanwhile,  we  shall  not  fall  into  these  wretched 
Southern  ways.  A  man  who  preaches  against  vice  should 
be  proof  against  it.  Why,  look  at  that  planter.  Hunt,  our 
neighbor.  Eeputed  to  be  the  wealthiest  man  in  the  coun- 
try, having  three  plantations  here,  and  two  or  three 
others  in  different  portions  of  the  State ;  and  yet  each  one 
of  them  mortgaged  for  a  part  of  the  original  purchase 
money,  and  then  mortgaged  again  to  some  New  Orleans 
factor  for  advances — even  the  homestead,  which  has  been 
in  the  family  thirty  years.  Not  a  single  place  paid  for. 
They  were  all  under  full  cultivation  before  the  war,  stocked 
with  slaves  and  commanded  by  overseers.  The  story  of 
this  man's  wealth  you  know  we  have  heard,  a  dozen  times, 
from  different  ones.  It  was  of  the  English  banker  at 
Vicksburg  I  learned  it.  '  He  was  never  worth  a  dollar,' 
said  he.  '  He  held  the  titles  to  several  plantations,  but 
they  were  not  ])a\d  for.  He  simply  owned  the  six  feet 
which  the  poorest  menial  on  the  face  of  God's  earth  owns,' 
was  the  banker's  closing  comment.     As  corroborative  of 

this,  I  learned  at  the  village  the  other  day,  that  he  had 
10* 


370  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

surrendered  all  his  places  except  those  near  us,  and  that 
they  were  likely  to  go.  'What  for?'  I  asked.  'He  had 
never  paid  for  them,  and  had  to  give  them  up,'  was  the 
answer. 

"  Hunt,  of  course,  raised  a  great  deal  of  cotton  on  these 
places.  If  it  was  so  profitable  before  the  war,  why  did  he 
not  pay  off  his  debts?  Simply  for  the  reason  that  there 
was  not  any  more  than  a  fair  living  profit  in  cotton  pro- 
duction, and  that  the  revenues  from  his  crops  were  antici- 
pated, never  less  than  two  seasons  ahead.  His  legitimate 
family  was  maintained  in  an  establishment  in  one  of  the 
border  slave  States,  where  they  lived  in  costly  style. 
They  were  understood  to  be  drawing  their  supj)ort  from 
the  revenues  of  Hunt's  cotton  plantations.  His  reputed 
wealth  had  enabled  him  to  marry  a  woman  of  true  refine- 
ment ;  and  their  home  in  the  border  State,  in  the  absence 
of  its  coarse  master — and  he  was  seldom  there — was  said 
to  be  chastely  elegant.  Then  there  was  an  illegitimate 
family  on  the  homestead  plantation  here — the  mother  of 
whom  was  at  once  slave  and  mistress,  except  when  the  le- 
gitimate family  made  their  occasional  visits.  I  saw  two 
of  her  daughters  at  the  village  store  once.  Beautiful  girls 
they  were,  with  scarcely  a  sign  of  the  negro  about  them. 
And  finally  there  was  Ihe  plassa  quadroon  wife  in  I^ew 
Orleans,  with  her  luxurious  establishment,  and  her  off- 
spring educated  in  Euroj^e.  In  journeying  to  and  from 
these  separate  establishments,  Hunt's  only  beverage  was 
champagne,  and  he  would  never  touch  a  game  of  poker  if 
it  had  a  limit.  It  is  said  of  him  that  he  would  not  ride 
after  hounds  here — which  he  was  passionately  fond  of 
doing — on  a  horse  which  had  not  cost  him  a  thousand  dol- 
lars and  upwards.  All  his  expenditures  were  on  a  par 
with  this.  Here  was  a  man  who,  if  his  debts  were  paid, 
would  not  own  the  boots  in  which  he  stood,  and  this  is  a 
not  uncommon  sample  of  Southern  wealth  and  habits." 


WINE.  371 

"What  a  coarse,  wicked,  and  false  life  it  was!"  said 
Dobson. 

"  Yes,  indeed,  it  was  all  that.  Merc  extravagances  may 
be  excusable,  provided  it  is  your  own  money  you  are 
spending,  but  it  is  not  excusable  to  indulge  in  extrava- 
gances, either  on  borrowed  capital  or  on  prospective  prof- 
its. It  is  plain  that  the  Southern  practices  were  in  viola- 
tion of  this  rule.  The  South  has  yet  to  learn  the  first  les- 
son in  finance." 

"What  is  that?" 

"  Live  within  your  income." 

"  I  think  from  what  you  say  about  men  holding  the  ti- 
tles to  plantations  which  they  have  not  paid  for,  that  there 
is  another  lesson  they  could  learn  to  advantage  :  a  man 
really  owns  only  what  he  has  paid  for." 

"  Yes,  and  so  long  as  you  divert  the  revenue  of  any 
thing  from  its  legitimate  channel— which  is  to  discharge 
the  debt  it  owes  as  fast  as  it  can  do  so,  and  at  the  same 
time  leave  means  to  develop  its  resources — so  long  as  an 
individual  does  that,  he  will  be  a  financial  failure." 

My  object  was,  if  possible,  to  induce  Dobson  to  abandon 
the  idea  of  running  in  debt  for  a  cask  of  claret.  While  it 
might,  as  he  said,  be  of  service  to  us,  I  thought  it  smacked 
strongly  of  falling  into  the  custom  of  the  country  in  the 
matter  of  drink,  and  of  spending  money  before  receiv- 
ing it. 

But  my  efi'ort  w^as  unavailing.  The  General  thought  we 
ought  to  have  the  claret,  and  so  ordered  it.  The  following 
is  a  copy  of  Dobson's  letter,  as  found  in  the  plantation 
letter-book  : 

"  Hebron  Plantation,  August  5,  1866. 

"  Gents  : — We  are  the  owners  of  the  above-named  place 
of  eleven  hundred  acres,  nine  hundred  acres  of  which  are 
in  cotton.  Our  chances  of  a  crop  depend  upon  there  being 
no  worm,  and  a  late  frost,  but  in  any  event  our  shipments 
will  be  considerable.    We  have  concluded  to  select  you  as 


372  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

our  factors.  If  you  are  willing  to  serve  us,  jjlease  indicate 
the  same  by  return  mail.  At  the  same  time  we  will  thank 
you  to  forward  us  by  packet  a  cask,  say  twenty  gallons,  of 
some  reliable  brand  of  table  claret,  charging  cost  of  same 
to  us,  and  awaiting  our  cotton  shipments  to  reimburse  you. 
We  shall  want  bagging  and  ties  shortly — will  notify  you 
when.  Yery  truly, 

"  DoBsoN,  Harding  &  Co. 
"  To  Carter  &  Thompson." 

Mechanically,  this  effort  of  Dobson's,  like  his  first,  which 
had  so  captivated  me,  was  lovely  to  look  upon.  But  I 
groaned  out,  as  I  read  it  in  the  letter-book  - 

"  Beautiful,  but  inwardly  dead  men's  bones  !" 

Whereupon  the  General  laughed,  good-naturedly,  say- 
ing :  "  No,  rather  life  and  restoration  to  health  for  us.  We 
can  stand  the  expenditure  for  a  cask  of  claret,  I  am  sure 
we  can." 

''  It  was  not  in  your  estimate,  General,  but  neither  were 
a  good  many  other  items.  The  pipes,  for  instance,"  I 
added,  jestingl}^,  though  more  than  half  in  earnest — at 
which  the  General  colored.    ''  Pipes  "  was  a  tender  subject. 

As  I  had  predicted,  the  claret  came  to  hand  by  the  re- 
turn packet,  with  a  very  polite  letter,  consenting  to  serve 
us,  and  including  a  bill  for  the  claret  of  $125,  which  the 
letter  said  was  charged  to  us.  The  majestic  steamer,  "  Gen- 
eral Quitman,"  whose  sonorous  whistle  could  be  heard  on 
a  clear  day  twenty  miles — and  which  we  had  heard  on 
this  particular  afternoon  even  further — finally  rounded  the 
bend  below,  hove  in  sight,  and,  after  swinging  across  the 
river  and  back  for  fully  two  hours,  stopping  at  almost 
every  plantation  landing,  to  leave  little  batches  of  freight 
and  planters  returning  from  a  trip  below,  at  last  steamed 
up  to  Hebron. 

It  Avas  a  beautiful  moonlight  night,  and  Dobson  and  my- 
self rode  down  to  the  landing  to  wait  for  the  boat's  arrival. 


WINE.  373 

As  is  the  custom  with  negroes,  when  out  of  the  field,  the 
Hebron  force  were  at  hand  to  watch  the  boat  in  to  and  out 
from  the  binding.  The  "  Quitman  "  shoved  her  prow  into 
the  soft  bank  with  such  force  that  she  cut  a  great  gash  in 
it,  which  remained  there  a  long  time  afterward.  If  the 
bank  had  been  rocky,  instead  of  alluvial,  the  blow  would 
have  shivered  her  to  pieces.  As  it  was,  she  stuck  fast  to 
the  shore,  with  a  current  of  four  miles  an  hour  against  her, 
and  without  any  line,  until  the  freight  was  off  and  the  re- 
versed wheels  pulled  her  out  again.  It  was  a  weird  sight, 
as  she  came  in  to  the  shore  with  her  torch  of  resin  and  pine 
fiiggots,  in  an  iron  basket  at  her  side,  casting,  as  it  did,  lurid 
shadows  upon  the  water,  exposing  to  view,  under  the  red 
smoky  sheet  of  flame,  the  small  army  of  stevedores  and 
piles  of  freight  down  on  the  lower  deck,  and,  when  the 
boat  came  nearer  to  the  bank,  sharply  defining  the  outlines 
of  the  rugged  shore,  and  bringing  out  under  its  light  the 
waiting  crowd  on  the  bank. 

As  we  passed^  down  upon  the  deck,  on  our  way  to  the 
clerk's  desk  in  the  cabin  to  pay  for  our  freight,  we  could 
see  barrels  of  pork,  sacks  of  corn,  barrels  of  corn-meal,  and 
bales  of  hay,  which  had  already  traveled  down  this  very 
stream  from  Cincinnati  or  St.  Louis,  now  traveling  up  the 
river  again,  eloquently  telling  their  story  of  the  peculiar 
management  which  prevailed  among  the  planters  of  the 
Mississippi  Yalley.  There  were  also  to  be  seen  any  num- 
ber of  kegs,  demijohns,  baskets,  and  boxes,  all  of  them  ev- 
idently containing  liquor  of  some  kind — a  feature  we  no 
longer  had  a  right  to  criticise,  since  our  cask  of  claret  had 
just  gone  up  the  bank.  At  the  present  rate  we  should  in 
a  year  or  two  be  ordering  our  supplies,  grown  in  the  AYest, 
from  ]^ew  Orleans. 

We  went  up  into  the  cabin,  and  there,  hanging  over  the 
bar,  taking  a  drink,  were  the  companions  of  our  first  trip 
down  the  river,  Parker  and  Southland.  They  looked  so 
natural,  that  it  seemed  a  continuation  of  our  first  journey, 


374  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

but  when  I  directed  Dobson's  attention  to  them  my  cracked 
voice  recalled  my  wandering  fancy.  Others  were  jostling 
their  way  either  to  or  from  the  bar.  There  were  two 
tables  of  card-players,  a  man  writing  letters,  others  loung- 
ing or  chatting,  all  smoking,  and  so  the  scene  was  made 
up.  The  captain  came  in,  taking  a  bee-line  to  the  bar, 
where  Parker  and  his  partner  still  were.  He  was  invited 
by  the  former  to  drink,  which  invitation  he  was  not  slow 
to  accept. 

There  was  of  course  a  profuse  display  in  the  bar  and 
clerk's  office  of  Confederate  Generals,  while  at  the  head  of 
the  boat  hung  a  likeness  of  General  Quitman,  of  Mexican 
war  fame,  whose  name  the  steamer  bore. 

The  officei-s  of  the  boat  were  all  polite  to  us,  but  there 
was  a  great  deal  of  staring  at  the  "  Yankees,"  by  the  pas- 
sengers. Our  status  was  evidently  understood.  Southland 
was  especially  savage,  as  he  leered  at  us,  and  his  right 
hand  went  under  his  coat-tail,  as  if  in  search  of  some- 
thing. 

Upon  the  bank  again,  we  took  the  first  good  look  at  our 
cask  of  claret. 

"Here  is  health  for  us,"  Dobson  exclaimed. 
"  There  is  rather  the  beginning  of  indebtedness  to  a 
New  Orleans  cotton-factor.     We  are  known  now  in  that 
city,  and  our  crop  is  mortgaged,"  1  said,  somewhat  snap- 
pishly, I  fear. 

It  was  a  foreign-looking  object,  which  our  eyes  rested  on. 
The  hoops  were  wrapped  with  something  resembling  split 
willow.  The  barrel  was  very  small  at  each  end,  bulging 
out  prominently  in  the  center.  There  was  a  wooden  stave 
across  one  end,  and  some  letters  were  burned  upon  it,  which 
Dobson  said  was  the  brand  of  the  claret.  On  the  other  end 
was  our  address.  Altogether  it  was  a  very  stylish  barrel, 
and  as  Dobson  rolled  it  over  to  inspect  it,  there  came  a  gurgle, 
which  he  declared  to  be  a  mighty  pleasant  sound.     Billy 


WINE.  375 

had  the  cart  at  the  landing,  into  which  the  cask  was  lifted 
and  at  once  carried  to  our  quarters. 

We  ought  to  have  prepared  ourselves  for  bottling  the 
claret  on  its  arrival,  by  ordering  the  necessary  bottles  and 
corks  forwarded  with  it.  But  we  did  not  know  this;  and, 
accordingly,  what  we  did  do  was  to  prepare  it  for  use  pre- 
cisely as  a  barrel  of  cider  is  prepared.  We  bored  a  hole  in 
one  end  of  the  cask,  in  which  we  put  a  common  cider  fau- 
cet, and  then  placed  the  cask  on  its  side,  on  blocks,  in  our 
little  cabin  closet,  at  the  side  of  the  chimney.  Having  a 
little  fire  on  the  hearth,  as  we  had  night  and  morning,  thus 
warming  up  the  chimney,  this  was  not  just  the  coolest 
place  we  could  find,  but  in  view  of  the  fact  that  negroes 
generally  have  a  weakness  for  liquor,  and  that  George  had 
a  particular  weakness  for  it,  this  was  the  safest  place  at  our 
disposal.  Here,  under  lock  and  key,  and  drawing  it  our- 
selves, there  was  no  danger  of  its  being  meddfed  with. 

If  it  had  been  our  intention  to  make  an  excellent  article 
of  wine-vinegar,  we  had  hit  upon  the  precise  location  and 
plan.  There  was  the  gimlet-hole,  which  we  bored  near 
the  bung,  to  admit  air,  and  there  was  the  gentle  warmth 
of  the  chimney. 

At  first  we  drank  the  wine  with  zest ;  then  it  seemed  to 
have  a  stale  flavor,  which  Dobson  attributed  to  our  lack  of 
a  cultivated  taste  rather  than  to  any  fault  of  the  wine. 
Finally,  it  became  decidedly  sour.  But,  notwithstanding 
this,  we  continued  to  drink  it,  not  suspecting  its  actual  con- 
dition, and  determined  to  think  it  our  own  defective  taste. 

One  day,  however,  Dobson  was  at  the  village,  and,  hav- 
ing in  mind  the  peculiar  sour  taste  of  our  claret,  without 
letting  the  bar-keeper  know  the  purpose  of  his  inquiry,  he 
learned  from  him  what  was  the  trouble.  The  wine  had 
turned  to  vinegar.  It  was  agreed  to  keep  the  matter  a 
profound  secret. 

If  you  want  to  make  Dobson  color  to  the  roots  of  his 
hair,  just  ask  him,  "  How  is  wine-vinegar  as  a  beverage?" 


376  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

We  made  no  farther  purchases  of  claret,  but  we  had  an 
excellent  article  of  wine-vinegar  on  hand,  as  an  asset,  when 
we  came  to  invoice  at  the  end  of  the  season  ;  besides  hav- 
ing made  a  beginning  in  running  a  Xew  Orleans  account 
which,  like  most  planters'  accounts  with  their  factors, 
would  doubtless  grow  to  be  a  ponderous  affair  on  the  debtor 
side. 


CHAPTER  LXV. 

LUMBER — DISAPPOINTED    HOPES. 

Between  the  second  and  third  generations  of  the  worm, 
was  another  brief  respite  for  our  laborers.  Some  little  time 
previous.  Colonel  Grey  had  returned  from  his  furlough, 
which,  not  needing  him,  and  not  wishing  to  inflict  any 
more  of  our  hard  experience  upon  any  one  than  was  abso- 
lutely necessary,  and  he  desiring  to  have  more  time  at 
home,  we  had  extended  indefinitely.  lie  was  occupying 
a  room  in  one  of  the  negro  cabins,  and  putting  up  cour- 
ageously, like  the  true  soldier  he  was,  with  our  rude  plai. 
tation  fiare. 

There  was  nothing  for  him  to  do  in  the  line  of  farm- 
ing, so  he  expressed  a  desire,  as  soon  as  we  could  spare  him 
the  necessary  hands,  to  get  to  sawing.  We  were  more  than 
ever  anxious  for  him  to  do  so,  since  our  cotton-crop  warned 
us  that,  even  under  favorable  conditions  as  to  the  worm 
and  frost,  we  should  need  outside  help  to  make  our  second 
payment,  and  supply  ourselves  with  funds  for  the  next 
year's  current  expenses. 

Our  earnest  hope  was  that  the  saw-mill  would  be  this 
auxiliary.  In  consequence,  we  came  to  look  upon  our  two 
hundred  acres  of  wood-land  with  something  of  that  feeling 


LUMBER,    ETC.  377 

of  relief,  which  is  experienced  by  a  commanding  officer,  des- 
pcratel}'  pressed  in  battle,  when  reinforcements  come  to  his 
rescue.  Those  tall  trees  out  tliere,  we  thought,  were  so  many 
soldiers,  ready  to  give  up  their  lives  to  save  our  enterprise 
from  the  disaster  which  sorely  threatened  it.  True,  we  had 
never  inspected  them,  to  see  what  kind  of  timber  we  pos- 
sessed, but  General  Ilampson  had  stated  that  it  was  fine 
timber-land,  and  we  had  never  doubted  his  statement.  By 
this  time,  however,  wo  had  learned  that  the  only  timber  of 
much  value  for  lumber  in  our  locality  was  cypress,  and 
that  it  was  exceedingly  valuable,  being  a  cross  of  pine  and 
cedar.  We  had  also  learned  to  recognize  this  tree,  by  its 
peculiar  scraggy  top.  Mr.  Sinton  had  pointed  out  what  he 
termed  his  magnificent  cypress-brake  in  the  rear  of  his 
l)lace,  with  unmistakable  pride,  and  had  told  us  that  all  his 
fences,  etc.,  were  of  that  material,  adding  that  it  was  next 
to  cedar  in  durability.  Upon  inquiry,  we  found  that  (he 
only  other  timber  in  any  way  suitable,  or  in  use,  for  lumber 
was  the  gum-tree,  somewhat  resembling  the  oak,  though 
not  at  all  like  it  either  in  durability  or  in  the  grain  of  the 
w^ood,  and  having  to  be  kept  in  the  dry  to  last  for  any  time. 
It  must  be  used  green,  and  be  very  firmly  nailed  down  to 
prevent  it  from  warping  fearfully. 

There  were,  besides,  to  serve  for  lumber  in  desperate 
cases,  the  cotton-wood,  similar  to  bass  or  linn— very  soft, 
and,  if  exposed  to  the  weather,  spongy,  and  lasting  a 
very  short  time  ;  the  hackberry,  the  beech-tree  of  the 
South,  and  an  occasional  sycamore. 

The  fact  Avas  that  the  only  timber  of  commerce  here  was 
the  cypress,  but  it  was  scarce,  and  hence  valuable.  Gum, 
cotton-wood,  hackberry,  and  sycamore  were  consequently 
sometimes  sawed  up  and  used  to  help  it  out,  for  sheathing, 
frames,  and  timbers,  and  wherever  the  wood  could  be  kept 
dry  ;  and  occasionally,  when  a  planter  had  no  cypress  on 
his  place,  they  were  made  into  plank  for  fencing,  being 


378  A   YEAR   OP   WRECK. 

put  on  green,  as  previously  stated,  before  the  boards  could 
have  time  to  warp. 

AVe  had  examined  the  buildings  on  Hebron,  and  found 
the  timbers  used  in  them  were  gum,  every  thing  else  being 
cypress.  This,  and  the  fact  of  the  saw-mill,  with  General 
HamjDSon's  statement,  led  us  to  suppose  there  must  be 
l)lenty  of  cypress  on  the  place,  though  it  was  not  exposed 
to  view,  as  was  Mr.  Sinton's.  We  concluded,  therefore,  it 
must  be  in  the  rear  of  what  appeared  to  be  mostly  gum-trees  ; 
and,  if  we  were  not  mistaken,  we  could  see  the  outlines  of 
their  scraggy  tojDS  beyond.  There  was  one  circumstance, 
however,  which  excited  our  distrust :  The  fire-wood  chiefly 
used  here  was  ash,  and  our  choppers  had  found  it  very 
scarce.  But  j^erhaps  our  treatment  was  making  us  need- 
lessly suspicious,  we  thought ;  and,  because  ash  was  scarce, 
it  did  not  necessarily  follow  that  cypress  was  also  scarce. 

We  detailed  our  two  carpenters  as  assistants  of  Colonel 
Grey  in  fixing  up  the  mill,  he  finding,  upon  inspection, 
that  many  of  the  timbers  Avere  useless,  having  rotted  away. 
Colonel  Grey  also  made  another  discovery.  Our  boiler 
was  of  locomotive  pattern,  and  the  whole  surface  of  it, 
called  the  crown  sheet,  where  the  fire  struck  it,  seemed  to 
be  badly  blistered,  and,  he  thought,  would  have  to  be  re- 
placed by  new  sheets  of  iron.  It  was  evident  that  the  long 
rest  to  which  the  gin-house  had  been  subjected  during  the 
war,  was  quite  as  injurious  to  them,  in  the  way  of  rusting 
out  machinery  and  rotting  timbers,  as  was  the  rest  to  the 
land  in  producing  its  weed-growth  and  choked-up  ditches. 
We  had  already  found  it  necessary  to  repair  our  grist-mill, 
at  considerable  outlay,  in  anticipation  of  grinding  our  own 
meal  when  we  fired-up  for  the  ginning  season.  Thus  the 
gin-house,  which  had  seemed  to  be  in  such  perfect  order 
when  General  Hampson  and  ourselves  had  inspected  it, 
was  proving  to  be  the  very  opposite.  The  engine  had 
been  last  used  for  grinding  meal  for  our  army,  and  had 
done  long  and  faithful  service  in  that  way,  for  either  one 


LUMBER,    ETC.  379 

side  or  the  other,  as  the  fortunes  of  the  campaigns  put  this 
locality  now  in  Federal,  now  in  Confederate  hands. 

Uncle  Wash  said:  ''Be  guo'ment  done  broke  it,  an'  de 
guo'ment  ought  to  repar  it." 

"Hardly  that,  Uncle  Wash,"  replied  Colonel  Grey; 
"  because,  when  the  damage  was  done,  it  was  owned  by  a 
Eebel  Senator,  and,  for  aught  we  know,  it  may  have  been 
injured  while  the  country  was  held  by  the  Confederates." 

We  sent  a  letter  to  the  nearest  machine-shop,  at  Yicks- 
burg,  describing  the  damage,  and  asking  the  firm  to  send  up 
a  boiler-maker,  to  look  at  it,  with  a  view  to  repairs,  if  such 
should  be  necessary.  In  due  time,  a  person  reported — a 
very  unprepossessing  Irishman,  who  carried  an  exposed 
flask  of  whisky  in  his  side-pocket,  and  a  pistol  under  his 
coat,  behind,  like  a  '•  true  Southerner  " — with  a  letter  from 
the  Yicksburg  machinists.  He  was  accompanied  by  three 
equally  disreputable-looking  companions,  whom,  after  his 
entrance,  I  saw,  through  our  cabin-window,  sitting  on  a 
strange  box  at  the  gate.  They  were  in  the  act  of  reinforc- 
ing their  spirits  from  a  flask  which  seemed  the  partner  of 
the  one  protruding  from  our  visitor's  pocket. 

"  Who  are  those  people?"  I  asked. 

"  One  is  me  pardner ;  the  two  b'ys  are  ribbit-bolders. 
I  brought  them  up  with  me,  and  a  box  of  tools,  so  that  we 
could  go  to  work  on  your  job  at  once,  if  we  could  agree  as 
to  price. 

These  men  might  be  capable  workmen,  but  without  the 
letter  they  bore,  from  a  reputedly  respectable  Yicksburg 
firm,  I  should  not  only  have  not  considered  them  for  a  mo- 
ment, but  should  have  regarded  them  as  disreputable 
characters.  The  necessity  of  the  job  was  evidently  pre- 
judged, coming  up  as  they  did  thus  in  force  to  do  it.  I  will 
not  tire  the  reader  by  giving  in  detail  the  disgusting 
dicker  over  the  price  of  the  work,  which  they  placed  at 
the  enormous  sum  of  S525,  besides  §90  for  one  little  patch 


380  A    YEAR   OP   WRECK. 

two  inches  square.  As  to  its  necessity,  after  a  glance,  the 
foreman  said : 

"Av  coorse  it  will  have  to  be  patched." 

After  they  had  finished  the  job,  they  went  to  the  village 
to  wait  for  a  boat  to  take  them  back  to  Yicksburg,  and 
while  there  got  drunk,  in  which  condition  they  boasted 
that  they  had  been  told  by  their  Yicksburg  employers  to 
charge  exorbitant  rates,  and  that  they  had  just  *'  salivated 
the  dommed  Yankees."  Their  stay  was  a  fearful  experi- 
ence ;  what,  with  their  drinking,  card-playing,  nightly  ca- 
rousing, and  intolerable  filth,  we  were  worn  out.  We  were 
firm  in  our  determination  to  make  them  do  good  work ; 
but  in  order  to  get  this,  we  had  to  see  every  rivet  driven, 
and  sometimes  the  work  was  temporarily  stopped,  until 
they  were  ready  to  go  ahead  as  we  desired.  Of  course  I 
bad  no  confidence  in  the  integrity  of  their  opinion,  and 
shall  never  know  whether  the  patches  were  really  needed 
or  not,  but  from  a  subsequent  development  I  am  inclined 
to  think  the  work  was  not,  at  the  time,  absolutely  neces- 
sary. What  I  allude  to  was  this: — instead  of  using  new 
iron  entirely,  as  they  should  have  done,  for  most  of  the 
work  they  heated  up  the  old  iron,  pounded  out  the  blisters, 
and  put  it  back  again  ;  so  that,  as  soon  as  we  began  to  use 
the  boiler,  there  were  the  old  blisters  again. 

Such  was  our  experience  of  the  character  of  this  class 
of  labor.  Think  of  the  robbery — 8615  for  what  ought  not 
to  have  cost  over  §200  with  entirely  new  iron  :  8615,  and 
the  old  blisters  back  again  ! 

What  we  ought  to  have  done  was  to  dismiss  the  Yicks- 
bur<T  gang  at  sight,  send  up  to  Cincinnati  or  St.  Louis,  and 
bring  down  honest,  competent  workmen  ;  but  this  is  not 
a  story  of  what  we  ought  to  have  done.  Should  we  have 
o-one  into  the  enterprise  at  all  if  we  had  done  just  what  we 
ought  to  have  done  ?  I  must  tell  the  reader  how  we  got 
the  money  to  pay  the  8615  swindle,  although  I  blush  to  do 
so.    We  added  it  to  our  claret  debt,  by  borrowing  the  sum 


LUMBER,    ETC.  381 

from  our  cotton  factor !  Thus  it  will  bo  understood  we 
bad  taken  anotber  step  towards  disbonesty.  "We  were  now 
ebinning  for  funds  in  earnest.  First,  we  bad  borrowed  to 
gratify  wbat  we  considered  a  luxury  ;  now  it  was  a  loan  to 
meet  a  necessity.  It  seemed  as  if  our  business  downfall 
bad  set  in. 

Then  we  looked  at  tbe  trees,  and  tbougbt  of  tbe  lumber 
in  tbem,  and  of  tbe  ants,  busy  in  tbe  field  upon  tbe  chrys- 
alis, and  grew  bopeful.  It  is  astonisbing  ujoon  wbat  slender 
threads  our  hopes  often  depend.  This  I  say  in  retrospect, 
because  we  did  not  at  tbe  time  begin  to  realize  our  con- 
dition. 

I  now  have  to  record  tbe  most  serious  disappointment 
we  bad  yet  encountered.  Our  saw-mill  was  progressing  to 
completion  ;  a  log-wagon,  in  Wisconsin  style,  was  pre- 
pared ;  and  Colonel  Grey  requested  a  squad  of  bands,  that 
be  might  go  out  into  tbe  woods  and  procure  some  logs,  and 
also  a  pair  of  our  largest  mules  for  the  log-wagon.  Thus 
be  would  chop  and  haul  at  once,  and  have  logs  on  band 
wben  tbe  mill  was  ready,  himself  remaining  in  tbe  woods 
to  superintend,  I  made  the  detail  as  be  desired,  and 
they  all  started  to  the  woods  bright  and  early  one  morn- 
ing (chanting  plantation  melodies,  and  charmed,  as  a  ne- 
gro always  is,  like  a  child  with  a  new  toy,  at  a  change  of 
work),  to  commence  operations. 

About  two  hours  afterwards.  Colonel  Grey  rode  back 
with  tbe  most  painful  expression  on  bis  face. 

"  Wbat  is  the  matter  ?"  I  asked,  frightened  by  bis  hag- 
gard, disappointed  look.  My  first  thought  was  that  some 
one  of  the  hands  might  have  been  injured,  perba2:)S  killed, 
by  a  falling  tree  ;  so  I  added  : 

''  Is  anybody  hurt  ?" 

"No,  sir,  not  that;  but  I  have  been  all  through  your 
woods  and  can  't  find  a  single  cypress  tree." 

I  looked  at  Dobson.  His  rubicund  features  bad  suddenly 
assumed  a  pale  hue,  under  which  bis  face  was  ghastl3\ 


382  A   YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

''  What  do  you  think  of  this?"  I  gasped  out. 

"  Oh,  God  !"  he  at  once  answered,  "  it  can  't  be  true — it 
is  too  cruel  to  contemplate." 

"  There  must  be  some  mistake,"  he  added,  as  if  trying  to 
convince  himself;  and  then  he  looked  pitifully,  but  inquir- 
ingly, into  Colonel  Grey's  face,  as  if  he  would  ask,  "  Do  n't 
you  think  there  is  some  mistake?"  but  he  hesitated,  as  if 
fearful  to  do  so,  because  the  answer  might  be,  was  almost 
certain  to  be,  against  him. 

"  I  wish  I  could  think  there  was  a  mistake,"  said  Colonel 
Grey,  very  gravely,  '•  but  I  have  made  what  I  regard  a 
thorough  reconnoissance,  and  you  have  my  report." 

"  But  hark.  Colonel !  did  you  not  hear  that  crash  ? 
That  was  a  falling  tree.  The  hands  must  have  found  some 
cypress,  after  all." 

Dobson's  face  lost  a  little  of  its  distressed  expression, 
and  he  added  : 

"  Yes,  that  was  certainly  a  falling  tree." 

Just  then  there  was  another  similar  sound,  and  my 
spirits  immediately  rose,  but  only  for  an  instant,  as  Colonel 
Grey  at  once  said  : 

"  Those  are  gum-trees.  Failing  to  find  cypress,  I  put 
the  laborers  to  chopping  them  down,  until  I  could  report 
to  you  the  condition  of  things,  and  ask  you  to  ride  out  and 
see  for  yourselves.  1  thought  we  might  find  a  market  for 
a  little  gum  lumber." 

This  was  the  thing  for  us  to  do,  see  for  ourselves;  so 
ordering  our  horses,  we  mounted  and  rode,  sadly  enough, 
to  the  woods. 

It  is  needless  to  say  that  Colonel  Grey's  statement  was 
fully  confirmed.  There  were  fifteen  or  twenty  cypress 
trees,  on  what  we  thought  might  be  an  upper  corner  of 
Hebron  ;  they  were  those  which  we  had  seen  outlined,  and 
which  had  served  to  allay  our  suspicions  ;  but,  upon  ex- 
amination, they  were  found  to  belong  to  the  plantation 
above  ;  and  not  only  this,  but  we  could  not  find,  though  we 


LUMBER,  ETC.  383 

scoured  our  woods,  a  single  ash-tree  either — and,  as  if  dis- 
appointments would  never  cease,  we  also  discovered  that 
the  ash  which  our  hands  had  cut  for  tlie  ginning,  etc.,  was 
not  on  Ilchron  at  all  ! 

"With  heavy  hearts,  we  turned  the  heads  of  our  horses 
homeward,  telling  Colonel  Grey  to  go  on  and  chop  down  a 
lot  of  the  gum-trees  ;  having  no  cypress,  we  would  see 
what  could  be  done  with  gum  lumber — it  might  be  only  a 
fiction  about  its  being  so  warpy.  Thus  did  we  grasp  at 
this  straw. 

Dobson's  face  wore  a  savage  look. 

"  The  fates  are  against  us,"  he  muttered.  "  Whichever 
way  we  turn  we  find  deception,  black  and  damnable,  as 
our  portion.  Fine  timber-land!"  he  exclaimed,  with  a  sar- 
castic curl  to  his  lip  ;  "  we  have  just  gone  over  it,  and  what 
do  we  find  ?  Eidges  of  gum-trees,  matted  with  a  growth 
of  cane  and  blackberry-bushes  ;  sloughs  full  of  moccasin- 
snakes,  fringed  with  willow-trees,  water-oaks,  here  and 
there  a  pecan,  persimmon,  sycamore,  or  cotton-wood;  with- 
out ash  enough  to  boil  a  tea-kettle,  or  cypress  enough  to 
make  our  coffins,  which,  from  present  indications,  we  shall 
soon  need." 

"  Splendid  picking  for  a  saw-mill  that !  Where  do  you 
suppose  Ilampson  got  his  cypress?"  I  asked  ;  "he  never 
found  it  on  Hebron.  There  is  a  trick  somewhere,  and,  as 
usual,  we  are  the  victims.  I  am  going  to  send  for  Cato,  and 
find  out  what  he  knows  about  it." 

-'  That  is  n't  going  to  give  us  fine  timber-land,  such  as 
Ilampson  told  us  wc  were  buying,"  said  Dobson,  now  fallen 
into  a  gloomy  mood. 

'^  jS'o,  but  there  will  be  some  satisfaction  in  knowing  the 
facts." 

That  evening  Cato  reported.  The  sum  of  his  informa- 
tion was  that  his  late  master  bought  a  raft  of  cypress  logs 
somewhere  above,  had  them  floated  down  against  the 
Hebron  levee  in  the  season  of  high  water,  which  was  the 


38i  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

way  he  got  his  cypress  for  the  Hebron  buildings,  but  that 
there  never  was  a  stick  of  cypress  grown  on  Hebron, 
"  plum  pintedly." 

I  never  dreamed  that  General  Dobson  could  be  so  pow- 
erfully affected  as  he  was  by  this  discovery,  nor  could  he 
have  been  by  this  alone ;  but  coming,  as  it  did,  in  addition 
to  the  other  sore  disappointments  and  trials,  which  had 
continued  to  strike  us,  blow  after  blow,  it  was  the  last  straw ; 
and  then,  poor  man,  he  was  far  from  well ;  his  sallow  face 
and  sunken  eyes  told  eloquently  of  the  effect  which  this 
semi-tropical  region,  with  our  wretched  preparations  for 
enduring  it,  was  having  upon  him.  The  fact  of  General 
Dobson's  taking  this  last  blow  so  much  to  heart,  together 
with  his  failing  physical  condition,  served  to  distract  for 
the  time  my  own  mind  from  brooding  over  our  common 
cause  for  grief. 

There  must  always,  if  a  calamity  befall  two,  sharing 
alike  the  same  fortune,  be  the  sufferer  and  the  assuager. 
The  latter's  task,  the  harder  one  of  the  two  to  discharge, 
this  time  fell  to  me. 

But  my  attempted  words  of  cheer  sounded  hollow,  and, 
indeed,  they  were  as  unsubstantial  as  a  building  without 
foundation. 

They  were,  "  Courage  !  courage  !  General,  we  shall  suc- 
ceed yet,"  while  from  the  outlook  there  were  no  grounds 
for  courage,  save  the  slender  one  that  the  ants,  supple- 
menting our  worm-slaughter,  might  destroy  the  chrysalis, 
and  so  save  us  further  infliction  from  the  worm. 

Thus,  whereas,  at  the  outset  of  our  enterprise,  our  sky 
was  beset  with  stars,  now  but  a  single  one  remained,  if,  in- 
deed, it  was  any  thing  more  than  a  will-o'-the-wis}). 

I  am  now  speaking  of  the  crop  of  1866,  because  I  never 
doubted  our  ultimate  success  in  cotton-planting.  ]N"o,  never 
in  our  darkest  moments  did  I  doubt  that ;  the  doubt  was 
whether  we  should  be  able  to  hold  on  until  that  happy 
time. 


dobson's  discouragement,  etc.  385 

Of  course,  each  one  of  the  many  robberies  which  had 
been  inflicted  on  us — each  one  of  our  own  many  mistakes, 
resulting  from  ignorance — had  made  us  less  able  financially 
to  hold  out,  and  each  one  had  helped  to  take  the  heart  out 
of  us,  too. 


CHAPTEK  LXVI. 
dobson's  discouragement — OLD  Clara's  comfort. 

It  was  painful  to  witness  Dobson's  writhing  under 
this  last  infliction; — it  really  seemed  as  if  another  blow 
would  crush  him,  and  yet  there  it  was,  impending,  in  the 
probable  destruction  of  our  crop  by  the  array-Avorm. 

We  sat,  the  evening  of  the  day  of  our  last  disappoint- 
ment, in  our  cabin,  brooding  over  the  trying  situation.  Our 
rude  dinner  had  been  carried  away  by  George,  almost  un- 
tasted,  including  the  claret,  which  was  growing  wretchedly 
sour.  We  were  smoking  our  pipes  in  silence.  Long  since  our 
last  cigar  had  disappeared,  to  be  replaced  by  pipes,  with 
black  navy  tobacco,  the  same  the  negroes  were  chewing. 
We  had  each  our  plug,  and  whittled  ofi'our  pipes  full,  each 
crumbling  it  in  the  hollow  of  his  left  hand,  with  his  right- 
hand  thumb,  in  true  Southern  style. 

George  had  taken  the  dishes  out  upon  the  gallery  for 
Mary,  who  occasionally  helped  him,  to  wash  them,  and  he 
was  now  sleeking-up  the  room,  trying  to  make  it  look 
cheerful.  But  Mary,  on  the  gallery,  with  her  sleeves  rolled 
up,  in  her  pink  gown,  and  with  her  sweet  face,  was  the 
only  cheerful  object  in  sight,  though  George's  devotion  was 
not  less  marked  than  Mary's  beauty. 
17 


386  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

Visiting  an  adjoining  plantation,  I  had  once  seen  iu  a 
negro  cabin  an  elaborate  oval  gilt  mirror,  which  had  doubt- 
less been  taken  surreptitiously  during  the  war  from  the 
residence  of  some  plantt^r.  I  was  struck  with  the  incon- 
gruity of  this  elegant  piece  of  furniture  with  such  rude 
surroundings.  Mary's  presence  recalled  this  looking-glass. 
Anxious  to  turn  our  thoughts  away  from  their  gloomy 
channels,  I  related  the  incident  to  Dobson,  and,  continuing, 
said  : 

"  "What  a  strange  war  it  was,  the  fortunes  of  which 
placed  a  French  mirror  in  that  cabin,  and  made  this  woman 
the  wife  of  that  negro.  The  war  robbed  the  mirror  of  its 
place,  but  it  has  given  the  woman  hers.  The  mirror  teas 
out  of  place,  the  woman  only  seems  so,  because  of  the 
bleaching  process  through  which  she  has  passed,  the  result 
of  her  white  graft." 

A  long  discussion  followed,  in  which  I  was  the  chief 
speaker,  Dobson  making  only  a  brief  remark,  or  answering 
a  question,  occasionally,  concerning  the  mixture  of  races 
under  the  institution  of  slavery,  a  striking  result  of  which 
was  the  pink-cheeked  beautiful  mulatto  woman  at  her  me- 
nial service  on  our  gallery,  when  a  knock  was  heard  at  the 
door,  and  Aunt  Clara  entered.  Her  great  black  shining 
face  glistened  upon  us,  the  soul  of  good  nature  and  perfect 
health.  We  greeted  Clara  with  the  customary  "  howdy?" 
to  which  she  responded,  with  a  graceful  curtsey,  and  an- 
swered, "  poo'ly." 

"  What  is  it.  Aunt  Clara  ?"  I  asked. 

Dobson  had  by  this  time  relapsed  into  his  mood  of  des- 
perate gloom,  from  which  our  talk  had  somewhat  ral- 
lied him. 

Looking  at  the  G-eneral,  she  replied  :  "  De  black  folks  's 
bin  tellin'  you  's  had  a  pow'ful  dissap'intment  'bout  de  cy- 
press, an'  de  Gen'l  da'  looks  's  if  he  war  jes'  done  out  wi'd 
it,  and  Clary  come'd  aroun'  to  tell  yo'  she  's  mighty  sorry 
'bout  it." 


dobson's  discouragement,  etc.  387 

The  General  looked  up  when  Clara  spoke  of  him,  and 
had  continued  looking  as  if  it  were  impossible  to  resist 
gazing  into  a  face  which  expressed  so  much  sympatiiy. 

"Thank  you,  Clara,"  he  replied,  "I  don't  doubt  your 
feeling  sorry,  but  there  is  no  help  for  it." 

"  No,  sa',  it  can  't  be  helped  ;  dat  is,  de  cypresses  can  't  bo 
sot  dar  in  de  woods  ;  but,  Gen'l,"  continued  Clara,  perch- 
ing her  head  on  one  side  as  if  she  were  now  about  to  say 
something  worth  hearing,  "  heah  me;  de  white  folks  in  dis 
country  would  n't  buy  a  single  lo'd  of  lumber  of  you  to 
Babe  yo'  souls,  an'  dat 's  de  truf,  plum  pintedly.  Ole  Clary 
heerd  you  was  greevin'  might'ly,  an'  she  jes'  could  n't  'sist 
de  temptation  to  come  up  heah  an'  tell  yo'.  Now,  da'," 
she  added,  heaving  a  long  breath  of  relief,  '•  Clary  feels 
better  ;  she  '11  go.  .Good  night,  Gen'l ;  good  night,  Mr. 
Harding." 

We  looked  at  each  other  inquiringly  a  full  minute  after 
her  departure. 

"  What  do  you  think  of  Clara's  idea,  General  ?"  I  finally 
asked. 

''I  am  afraid  it  is  too  true,"  replied  Dobson,  shaking  his 
head  with  a  grave  face,  but  from  which  the  gloom  was 
lifting.  Then  he  suddenly  added,  with  an  angry  flash  of 
the  eye  : 

"  What  fools  we  were  to  sujipose  we  could  find  patronage 
for  our  lumber  in  the  midst  of  a  people  where  there  is  such 
a  despotism  of  opinion  that  even  the  best  disposed  towards 
us  do  not  treat  us  decently,  for  fear  they  will  be  charged 
with  a  sympathy  for  Yankees.  Buy  lumber  of  us  ?  No, 
old  Clara  was  right ;  her  mother-wit  is  worth  all  our 
knowledge — we  could  n't  sell  a  stick  of  lumber." 

''  Unless,"  I  interrupted  his  paroxysm  to  say,  '^  we  should 
advertise  to  do  a  credit  business,  in  which  case,  I  suppose 
we  could  sell  as  much  lumber  as  Mr.  Sinton  has  in  his 
cypress  brake,  if  we  had  that  much  sawed." 


388  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

"  Oh,  yes ;  they  'd  buy  lumber  of  us  on  credit,  and  then 
never  pay  for  it,"  replied  Dobson,  bitterly,  "just  as  they 
have  borrowed  our  pork,  and  do  n't  return  it.  If  they 
won  't  pay  a  debt  of  honor,  how  is  it  to  be  expected  that 
they  would  pay  one  incurred  in  the  ordinary  run  of  busi- 
ness?" 

"  May  be  they  do  n't  consider  any  debt,  with  '  Yankees  ' 
situated  as  we  are,  one  of  honor." 

"  But  it  is  a  wonder  it  never  occurred  to  us  before  that 
there  was  no  chance  of  our  finding  a  market  here  for  lum- 
ber," Dobson  continued,  after  a  moment's  thought. 

"  Well,  no,  not  so  much  of  a  wonder,  when  you  remem- 
ber that  this  lumber  scheme  was  started  early  in  the  sea- 
son, before  we  fully  realized  the  extent  of  hostility  towards 
us,  and  that  it  was  finally  taken  up  as  a  last  resort  for  us 
in  our  desperate  straight." 

"Yes,  yes!  "  Dobson  replied,  his  head  falling  upon  his 
breast,  with  an  air  of  utter  hopelessness,  "  that  is  so." 

George  came  in  now  to  prepare  for  our  nightly  bath. 

"  JS'ever  mind  about  my  bath,  George,"  Dobson  said. 
"  There  is  nothing  worth  living  for  here,"  and  then,  heart- 
sick, and  sick  in  body,  my  poor  companion  went  off  to  bed, 
not  to  rest,  but  to  tumble  and  fret  the  night  through,  and 
to  show  himself  still  more  haggard  in  the  morning. 

In  explanation  of  Gen.  Dobson's  sinking  under  our 
late  blow,  while  I  did  not,  it  is  j^roper  to  say  that,  while 
difference  in  temperament  may  have  had  something  to  do 
with  it,  the  main  reason,  perhaps,  was  that  he  was  quite  a 
number  of  years  my  senior,  and  was  here  called  upon  to 
encounter  experiences,  which,  in  order  to  be  endured  with 
any  comi^lacency,  should  be  met  in  earlier  life. 

Dobson  had  left  behind  him  those  years,  filled  with  en- 
thusiasm, hope,  trust  and  confidence,  which  come  into  the 
life  of  every  one  when  he  first  passes  the  threshold  of  man- 
liood — the  close  of  which,  if  he  is  successful,  finds  him  with 


CREDIT  VS.  CASH.  389 

refined  judgment,  self-confident  and  happy;  if  otherwise, 
with  distrust  of  his  ability  and  bitterness  of  heart. 

Dobson's  age,  with  his  experience,  and  hence  ripened 
judgment,  led  him  to  the  conclusion  that  we  were  hope- 
lessly lost ;  therefore,  he  was  crushed,  overwhelmed,  while 
™y  i^gc,  and  immature  judgment,  enabled  me  only  to  see  a 
grave  situation,  which  demanded  and  inspired  me  to  greater 
endeavor.  It  w\is  given  to  him  to  look  into  the  past  as 
well  as  to  the  future,  and  if  there  was  no  fruit  in  the  retro- 
spect or  prospect,  the  eifect  just  described  naturally  fol- 
lowed ;  while  my  life  was  all  in  the  future,  and  if  no  fruit 
was  in  sight,  I  could  say,  with  the  happy  trust  of  my  years, 
this  is  the  planting  season— it  is  too  soon  to  expect  fruit. 
This  I  say  now,  with  Dobson's  years  upon  my  own  head. 
I  can  now  appreciate  the  brave,  noble  man's  despair,  as  I 
could  not  then.  And  if  I  lacked  in  sympathy— as  perhaps 
I  did,  because  in  the  absence  of  experience  I  could  not  ap- 
preciate his  situation— I  here  drop  a  tear,  in  recollection  of 
my  partner's  feelings  at  that  time. 


CHAPTER  LXVII. 

CREDIT  VS.  CASH. 

Negroes  are  almost  universally  both  chewers  and  smok- 
ers, including  a  large  percentage  of  the  women,  and  their  con- 
sumption of  navy-tobacco,  which  they  used  for  both  purposes, 
was  very  great.  Another  item  of  heavy  expense  to  those 
on  our  plantation  was  their  shoes,  though  in  the  order  of 
expense  probably  whisky  should  come  first.  As  for  cloth- 
ing, their  out-fit,  like  Joseph's  coat,  was  generally  patch- 
work.    The  negro  has  no  disposition  to  cast  off  a  garment 


390  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

when  a  hole  appears  in  it ;  on  the  contray,  it  is  to  patch 
and  patch,  until  the  last  vestige  of  the  original  garment 
disai^pears,  in  which  condition  it  is,  for  the  first  time,  in 
its  glory. 

A  good  many  of  the  wants  of  our  laborers  we  supplied 
by  purchases  at  the  village  store.  In  consequence,  our 
trade  at  that  place  was  a  considerable  item.  Every  week 
I  would  have  to  go  down  and  buy  brogans,  navy-tobacco, 
etc.,  for  which  I  always  paid  cash,  our  names  never  appear- 
ing once  during  the  season  on  the  books  of  the  village  mer- 
chant, although  I  was  frequently  told  not  to  be  particular 
about  paying  at  the  time  of  purchase.  Our  credit,  like 
that  of  all  new-comers,  was  i?ar  excellence.  I  am  not  aware 
of  any  other  point  of  seeming  advantage  on  the  part  of  our 
class,  but  it  is  a  fact  that  we  were  looked  upon  as  having  an 
abundance  of  money,  and  though  Southern  people  would 
not  fraternize  with  us,  they  would  sell  us  any  thing.  For 
it  was  freely  admitted  -that  they  were  generally  short  of 
funds,  and  nothing  was  more  fashionable  in  their  circles 
than  to  plead  i^overty  as  the  result  of  the  war. 

We  almost  always  found  Southern  people  at  the  store 
purchasing  similar  articles  to  those  we  were  buying,  but 
unlike  us,  they  were  generally  having  them  charged — to  be 
paid  for  out  of  their  crop. 

In  the  course  of  the  season,  it  gradually  leaked  out  that 
the  village  merchant  was  charging  us  the  same  price  for 
our  cash  purchases  that  he  was  charging  other  planters  for 
their  purchases  on  credit. 

All  along  we  had  regarded  these  prices  as  excessive. 
For  instance,  we  paid  for  navy-tobacco  by  the  caddy, 
which  was  the  form  in  which  we  bought  it,  $1.25  cents  per 
pound.  And  we  paid  for  every  thing  else  in  the  same  pro- 
portion. Thus,  for  every  dollar  we  were  expending,  the 
merchant  was  making  from  fifty  to  sixty  cents  profit. 

I  had  not  thought  much  about  this  matter  early  in  the 
season,  while  I  was  counting  on  the  Dobson  estimate,  but  as 


CREDIT  VS.  CASH.  391 

the  year  advanced,  and  our  prospect  waned,  I  came  to  re- 
gard it  as  a  serious  matter,  and  finally  complained  to  the 
merchant  about  his  prices,  and  the  fact  that  he  did  not  dis- 
criminate in  favor  of  our  cash  purchases. 

"  Buying,  as  we  do,  tobacco  by  the  caddy,  and  shoes  by 
the  dozen,  our  purchases  arc  in  the  nature  of  wholesale, 
and  paying  you  cash,  as  we  do,  you  ought  to  sell  lis  very 
low." 

"  My  dear  sir,"  he  replied,  "  we  can  't  afford  to  sell  you 
any  lower  than  we  do.  We  have  to  sell  to  most  of  the 
planters  on  long  time.  A  good  many  of  them  never  pay 
us  at  all.  Unless  we  get  big  prices  from  our  good  custom- 
ers it  would  be  impossible  to  make  any  money." 

Shocked  at  his  statement,  which  had  not  a  single  prin- 
ciple of  correct  business  in  it,  I  exclaimed  : 

"  What  is  this,  but  making  what  you  call  your  good  cus- 
tomers pay  for  the  goods  purchased  by  the  many  who 
never  pay  ?" 

"  Oh,  well,  that  is  one  view  to  take  of  it ;  but  really,  sir, 
when  we  come  to  charge  up  the  heavy  losses,  our  profits  are 
none  too  large." 

"  Why  do  n't  you  stop  trusting  those  who  make  your 
losses?" 

"  They  would  get  mad,  raise  a  row,  most  likely  shoot — 
and  I  do  n't  like  fusses.  Eather  than  that,  I  trust  them. 
Some  of  them  may  pay,  if  times  get  better.  If  that  happy 
day  ever  comes,  when  everybody  here  pays  his  debts,  we  can 
sell  goods  cheaper;  until  then  we  have  got  to  charge  up." 

"  But  the  eifect  of  this,  when  rightly  understood,  will 
be  to  drive  off  your  good  customers ;  for  clearly  you  are 
making  them  pay  your  losses  on  the  poor  ones  to  whom 
you  say  you  are  afraid  to  refuse  credit.  That  is  an  awful 
condition  of  things,  when  a  man,  pecuniarily  irresponsi- 
ble, can  force  a  merchant  to  sell  him  goods — that  mer- 
chant all  but  certain  that  he  will  never  get  his  pay.  1 
do  n't  see  any  difference  between  this  and  the  highway  rob- 


392  A   YEAR    OF   WRECK. 

ber's  motto  ;  the  one  is,  '  Your  money  or  your  life  ;'  tbe 
other  is,  "Your  goods  or  your  life, — your  goods,  which, 
all  the  same,  are  money ;  and  then  you  depredate  your 
good  customers  to  make  up  your  losses,"  I  said,  trying  to 
be  good-natured  in  my  deservedly  severe  remarks. 

"It  is  nothing  new.  This  is  the  way  we  did  business 
before  the  war;  only  it  is  likely  to  be  worse  now  than  then 
— our  losses,  I  mean." 

"  Do  n't  you  think  you  could  select  your  customers,  re- 
fusing those  whom  you  do  n't  consider  good  ?" 

"  I  should  n't  like  to  try  it,"  he  said,  significantly, 
*  though  we  may  be  forced  to  do  it  from  lack  of  money  to 
go  on.  You  know  when  this  season  opened  we  all  had 
great  hopes.  We  got  free  credit  in  New  Orleans ;  we  gave 
free  credit  here.  Now,  that  the  out-look  is  so  poor,  New 
Orleans  is  shutting  down  on  us,  and  we  may  have  to  do 
the  same  with  our  customers. 

"  Well,  I  do  n't  know  how  it  may  strike  others  who  deal 
with  you  and  pay  cash,  but  we  certainly  can  not  afford  to 
pay  you  prices  to  enable  you  to  make  up  your  losses  by 
your  credit  customers,  nor  will  we  do  it.  If  this  is  your 
programme,  and  you  will  not  deviate  from  it,  much  as  we 
regret,  we  shall  have  to  withdraw  our  custom.  We  can, 
of  course,  buy  goods  as  cheap  as  you  can,  which  we  will 
have  to  do,  opening  up  a  full  line  of  necessities  on  the  plan- 
tation, and  thus  coming  in  contact  with  your  trade,  be- 
cause, if  we  oj^en  a  store,  we  shall  aim  to  sell  to  the 
negroes  on  other  places.  I  say  negroes,  for  the  reason  that 
I  would  not  expect  your  Southern  white  friends  to  patron- 
ize us,  even  if  we  should  sell  goods  cheaper  than  you  do. 
Their  prejudice,  we  have  discovered  since  our  residence 
here,  is  so  strong  against  us,  that  they  would  not  patron- 
ize us  under  any  circumstances  ;  but  the  negro  is  predis- 
posed in  our  favor,  and  would  be  certain  to  patronize  us. 
If  I  am  not  mistaken,  aside  from  our  class  of  trade,  he  is 
your  best  customer." 


CREDIT  VS.  CASH.  393 

"  Oh,  you  can  buy  cheaper,  because,  having  the  money, 
you  can  order  from  either  Cincinnati  or  St.  Louis.  We, 
having  to  borrow  our  capital  in  New  Orleans,  are  com- 
pelled to  bu}'  our  goods  there  through  our  factor,  paying 
heavy  commissions  and  New  Orleans  profits.  You  are 
right  in  supposing  that  next  to  your  class  the  negro  is  our 
best  customer.  I  shall  be  sorry  to  lose  your  custom,  and 
have  your  competition,  but  I  can  't  sell  my  goods  any 
cheaper.  I  have  to  charge  all  as  I  do,  in  order  to  make 
any  money.  If  every  body  paid  me  I  could,  of  course, 
sell  goods  cheaper,  but  as  it  is  I  can  not." 

Such  was  the  logic  of  our  village  merchant.  I  give  the 
conversation  as  it  occurred,  in  order  that  the  reader  may  un- 
derstand his  idea — which  was  no  doubt  the  characteristic  one 
of  the  country  at  that  time — of  how  goods  should  be  sold. 

While  his  utterances  were  foolish,  they  were  not  the  ut- 
terances of  a  man  reputed  foolish  himself; — on  the  con- 
trary, he  was  regarded  as  the  shrewdest  and  best  business 
man  in  our  section.  I  fear  the  reader  will  exclaim,  "  God 
help  the  others,  if  he  was  the  best  of  them."  So  far  as  he 
was  trusting  men  whom  he  knew  to  be  poor  pay,  how  elo- 
quently did  it  tell  of  a  despotism  of  opinion,  as  hateful  as 
it  was  unwholesome.  Was  it  possible  to  have  a  healthy 
condition  of  things  in  a  community  where  such  a  de- 
plorable state  of  affairs  existed?  Only  think  of  it: — the 
leading  village  merchant  afraid  to  refuse  credit,  and  actu- 
ally letting  his  goods  go  to  men  who  he  was  absolutely  cer- 
tain would  never  pay  him,  because  he  was  apprehensive 
they  might  raise  a  fuss  or  shoot — and  then  making  up  his 
losses  on  his  good  customers  I 

Did  not  this  single  wretched  fact  convict  and  condemn 
this  locality  ?  There  may  be  despotisms  in  the  old  world, 
but  I  do  not  believe  it  has  a  parallel  to  that  here  indicated. 
Possibly  there  may  be  those  who  will  say  this  statement 
is  a  fiction — that  it  is  too  improbable  to  be  true;  but  every 
word  of  it  is  the  truth.    I  have  reported  precisely  what  the 


394  A    YEAR    OF    "WRECK. 

village  merchant  said  to  me,  every  word  of  "svhich  was  ver- 
ified by  his  practices.  It  was,  moreover,  corroborated  by 
the  English  banker's  statement,  that  not  uncommonly,  be- 
fore the  war,  New  Orleans  factors  continued  to  trust  plant- 
ers, frequently  the  leading  men  of  their  localities,  when 
they  knew  they  were  not  responsible,  for  fear  of  giving  of- 
fense. The  village  merchant  was  thus  only  following  the 
example  of  his  factor — an  example,  I  add,  which  was  here 
regarded  as  commendable. 

From  this  rotten  state  of  affairs  sprang  the  plantation 
stores,  which  in  the  coming  years  dotted  the  country — ours 
being  the  pioneer  enterprise.  Because  we  meant  to  be  as 
good  as  our  word,  we  proceeded,  as  soon  as  we  could,  to 
put  our  resolution  into  execution.  We  could  not,  nor 
would  we,  place  ourselves  on  a  par  with  men  who  did  not 
propose  to  pay,  or  could  not  pay  their  debts,  nor  would  we, 
any  longer  than  we  could  help,  allow  the  merchant  to 
charge  to  our  cash  purchases  a  j^ro  rata  share  of  his  bad 
debts,  which  by  his  own  statement  he  was  doing. 

This  village  merchant  was  a  sincere,  honest  man,  and  he 
thoroughly  believed  that  the  same  price  should  be  asked 
for  a  pair  of  brogans,  whether  the  purchaser  paid  cash 
or  had  them  charged,  being  almost  absolutely  certain  at 
the  time  of  sale,  in  the  latter  case,  that  he  would  never  re- 
ceive a  cent  of  pay  for  them.  If  there  ever  was  an  inflex- 
ible one-price  store,  it  was  here.  It  was  the  same  price, 
whether  he  sold  his  goods  or  gave  them  away  ! 

Is"or  was  he  singular.  This  habit  ran  through  every 
branch  of  business.  It  was  as  much  the  established  cus- 
tom as  slavery  had  been.  The  purchaser  practically  said, 
"  We  are  good,  if  we  never  pay,"  and  the  answer  was, 
"  Yes,"  from  the  party  selling  to  him,  with  the  practical 
addition,  "  and  you  seldom  do  pay,  but  all  the  same,  come 
and  buy."  Sifted  down,  it  was  really  a  continuation  of  the 
ante-bellum  system  of  unlimited  credit. 

The  village  merchant  was  doing  business,  according  to 


CREDIT   VS.    CASH.  395 

Ill's  own  admission,  by  means  of  credit  with  the  cotton  fac- 
tor. What  cared  he  for  money  ?  "As  long  as  my  drafts 
are  paid,  I  am  all  right,"  was  his  reasoning.  The  planter 
was  purchasing  of  him  in  tho  same  way.  '•  What  care  I 
for  money?"  was  his  practical  utterance — "as  long  as  tho 
merchant  will  sell,  or  the  factor  pay  my  drafts,  I  am  satis- 
fied." 

Thus  it  was  the  ability  to  get  credit,  not  the  cash  in 
hand,  that  was  made  the  standard,  and,  because  of  this,  a 
man  was  wealthy  so  long  as  he  could  get  credit.  In  other 
words,  it  was  not  his  cash  receipts  that  fixed  his  financial 
status,  but  it  was  the  drafts  he  could  draw,  and  have  paid, 
and  the  goods  he  could  buy  on  credit — his  outlay  and  not 
his  income.  The  idea  of  credit  ramified  through  every 
thing — individual,  commercial,  municipal,  and  state — be- 
cause generally  every  thing  and  every  body  were  buried 
under  a  mountain  of  debt,  though  but  few  seemed  to  real- 
ize it.  The  question  was  not,  have  we  any  money  on 
hand  ?  but  will  our  drafts  be  paid — can  we  buy  such  and 
such  articles  on  credit  ? 

From  this  stand-point,  the  position  of  the  village  mer- 
chant was  logical — credit,  not  cash,  was  the  desideratum. 
AVhy,  then,  should  he  charge  us  less  for  cash,  for  which  he 
did  not  care,  than  he  charged  others  for  credit,  for  which 
he  cared  every  thing?  Not  that  he  did  not  care  for  cash 
— no,  he  would  have  resented  such  a  suggestion  ;  but  this 
was  the  practical  effect  of  his  method  of  doing  business. 
And  it  was  not  a  credit  based  on  resources,  either,  for  it 
was  often  indiscriminate  in  its  character.  Nor  was  it  a 
credit  for  legitimate  purposes  alone,  because  included  in 
its  uses  was  every  vice. 

It  is  fair  to  say  that,  while  resisting  the  village  mer- 
chant's ideas  of  credit,  I  did  not  forget  our  recent  invest- 
ment of  our  crop  in  claret.  Thus,  it  may  be  said,  we  saw 
the  evil,  but  had  not  altogether  shunned  it.  It  would  be 
well  for  us  if,  simply  tasting  the  fruit  (wine),  as  we  had 


396  A   YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

done,  and  finding  it  bitter,  or  rather  sour,  we  should  ever 
after  abstain  from  further  temptations. 

However  that  might  be,  I  then  felt  exceedingly  virtuous 
and  said  to  Dobson  :  ''  Our  village  merchant  has  driven  us 
away  from  his  store,  as  he  is  driving  away  many  other 
prudent  ones,  because  he  insists  in  charging  us,  who  do 
pay,  the  same  price  he  charges  others  who  do  not  pay." 

"  So  far  as  he  is  doing  this  for  fear  of  giving  offense,  he 
is  truly  to  be  pitied  ;  and  he  is  to  be  pitied,  though  in  an- 
other way,  for  his  regard  for  credit  above  cash  ;  and  he  is 
to  be  pitied  in  still  another  way — for  his  downright  ignor- 
ance of  plain  business  rules." 


CHAPTEE  LXYIII. 

CROP   DESTROYED    BY    ARMY-WORM — RETROSPECT   AND   PROS- 
PECT. 

As  Mr.  Sinton  had  predicted,  the  third  crop  of  the  army- 
worm  made  its  appearance  on  the  28th  of  September. 
While  we  were  getting  out  our  gum-tree  logs  for  sawing, 
the  third  crop  of  millers  appeared.  They  had  not  seemed 
to  be  very  numerous,  however,  and  so  we  hoped  the  ants 
had  all  but  succeeded  in  destroying  the  chrysalis.  This 
went  far  towards  restoring  the  tone  of  Dobson's  feelings, 
after  our  lumber  disappointment,  and  led  us  to  hope  that 
we  were  to  be  spared  the  last  great  blow  :  the  destruction 
of  our  crop  by  the  army-worm.  If  such  were  to  be  our  good 
fortune,  we  felt  it  would  repay  us  for  all  the  hardships  we 
had  encountered  ;  and  as  the  time  for  the  third  crop  of  the 
worm  approached,  our  anxiety,  which  had  come  to  be  cen- 
tered in  the  saw-mill,  was  transferred  to  the  worm. 


CROP   DESTROYED    BY    ARMY-WORM,  ETC.  397 

Dobson  knew  just  when  to  expect  the  millers  in  the  field, 
from  the  hatching  of  the  chrysalids  which  he  had  placed 
under  a  glass.  The  evening  of  the  day  which  saw  his 
prisoners  out  also  saw  their  brothers  flying  into  our  room 
from  the  field,  attracted  by  the  light ;  and  a  reconnoissance, 
early  the  following  morning,  showed  them  along  the  ditch 
banks,  flying  out  into  the  cotton,  before  the  heat  of  the 
day  should  drive  them  into  the  shade,  and  busy  laying 
their  eggs. 

We  estimated,  from  the  numbers  of  this  third  crop  of 
millers,  that  our  destruction  of  the  worm,  and  the  destruc- 
tion of  the  chrysalis  by  the  ants,  had  reduced  the  crop  to 
about  what  the  second  one  was.  If  this  estimate  was  cor- 
rect, we  had  accomplished  our  object  in  putting  the  in- 
crease of  the  worm  back  a  generation,  and  might  expect 
the  third  crop  of  the  worm  to  be  only  about  as  numerous 
as  the  second  ;  and  if  they  were  no  more  destructive  than 
the  Second,  no  great  harm  would  be  done. 

For  two  days  we  continued  to  hope.  The  weather  was 
exceedingly  hot,  and  the  theory  was  that  the  worm  did  not 
eat  during  the  heat  of  the  day.  His  life  being  so  brief,  if 
there  were  but  a  few  hours,  morning  and  evening,  for  him 
to  feed,  he  could  of  course  accomplish  much  less  than  if 
the  weather  were  rainy  or  cloudy,  which  would  enable  him 
to  feed  constantly. 

Thus  the  elements  seemed  to  be  in  our  favor.  But  each 
day  saw  the  number  of  worms  increasing.  The  third  day 
it  became  alarming,  on  the  fourth  more  alarming,  and  on 
the  fifth  the  case  seemed  hopeless. 

The  sun  shone  hot,  but  the  worms  did  not  mind  it  any 
more  than  the  mocking-birds  or  the  negroes.  They  ate 
voraciously  all  day  long,  traveling  from  stalk  to  stalk,  each 
one  for  himself,  and  all  seeming  to  be  famished.  As  the 
cotton  leaves,  save  the  veins,  disappeared  under  their  steady 
attacks,  they  were  to  be  found  in  the  road-ways,  on  the 
ditch-banks— every -where,  without  the  least  concert  of  ac- 


398  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

tion,  no  two  moving  in  the  same  direction  ;  and  Tvhen  the 
dusk  of  evening  came  on,  their  eating  could  be  distinctly 
heard,  falling  upon  the  ear  with  a  low,  chopping  sound, 
while  the  odor  of  the  bleeding  leaves  filled  the  atmosphere. 

It  is  doubtful  whether  there  were  really  any  more  worms 
than  those  of  the  second  crop,  but  how  different !  The 
second  crop  were  not  ^particularly  hungry,  while  these 
seemed  to  have  come  into  the  world  in  a  starving  condi- 
tion, and  never  for  an  instant  during  their  existence  did 
they  appear  to  be  able  to  get  their  fill.  The  fact  was,  the 
cotton  crop  being  so  short  left  but  little  for  them  to  feed 
upon.  When  they  had  taken  a  good  square  meal,  there 
were  no  leaves  remaining.  It  is  my  belief  that  if  there 
had  been  a  fair  crop  of  cotton,  and  thus  an  abundance  of 
leaves,  we  should  not  have  been  seriously  injured  by  the 
worm  visitation,  and  our  effort  to  destroy  them  had  been 
successful  ;  but  the  crop  was  not  sufficient  even  to  justify 
that  effort. 

We  had  demonstated,  however,  that  the  increase  of  the 
worm  could  be  retarded  a  generation.  This  fact  might  be 
valuable  for  the  future.  In  this  respect,  it  was  on  a  par 
with  all  our  labors  of  the  year ;  for,  now  that  the  struggle 
was  over,  it  was  as  well  to  acknowledge  that  never  for  an 
instant  did  we  have  any  show  for  a  crop. 

Eut  there  had  to  be  a  beginning,  and,  like  other  pioneers, 
we  had  plowed  and  planted  and  organized  our  laborers,  real- 
izing and  endeavoring  to  remedy  their  shortcomings  and 
our  own.  If  we  had  succeeded  in  redeeming  our  weed- 
ridden  plantation,  reforming  some  of  the  defects  in  our  ne- 
gro laborers,  and  gaining  some  knowledge  of  farming  our- 
selves, thus  laying  the  foundation  of  a  crop  in  1867,  we  had 
done  all  that  in  human  reason  there  was  any  hope  to 
expect. 

Our  fields,  which  had  given  us  so  much  solicitude,  alter- 
nating between  hope  and  despair,  and  which  a  few  days 
previous,  when  the  millers  came  so  sparsely,  had  looked  so 


CROP   DESTROYED    BY    ARMY-WORM,    ETC.  399 

promising,  indicating  that  our  struggle  was  over  and  that 
victory  was  at  hand,  now  suggested  a  ground  strewn  with 
skeletons.  But  3'esterday  there  were  the  growing  cotton- 
stalks — now  they  were  stripped  of  their  leaves,  showing 
here  and  thei*e  a  mature  cotton-boll,  and  only  the  dry  skel- 
etons of  their  former  growth. 

General  Dobson  was  perfectly  crushed,  and  fled  on  the 
first  boat  he  could  catch  to  the  IXorth,  while  Colonel  Grey, 
seeing  plainly  that  there  was  nothing  left  for  him,  hurried 
off,  heart-sick,  for  his  home  in  Wisconsin.  Except  Billy, 
mine  was  now  the  only  white  face  remaining  on  Hebron. 

The  fate  of  our  plantation  was  but  the  common  one. 
The  visitation  of  the  army-worm  swept  like  a  besom  of 
destruction  over  the  South,  and  all  were  alike  prostrated. 
All  that  we  could  do  was  to  wait,  now  that  the  bolls 
were  entirely  exposed  to  the  sun,  for  them  to  open,  and 
then  gather  such  portions  of  the  croj)  as  were  ripe.  There 
was  this  single  illusion  surviving,  the  hope  that  a  good 
many  bolls  were  already  matured. 

The  reader  will  understand  that,  when  this  destructive 
visitation  of  the  army-worm  came,  on  each  stalk  were  cot- 
ton-bolls in  all  stages  of  growth — from  those  fully  matured 
to  those  from  which  but  the  day  before  the  blossom  had 
dropped — as  well  as  buds  and  blossoms.  It  was  only  ma- 
ture bolls,  or  those  nearly  mature,  that  would  yield  cotton. 

The  worms  left  the  veins  of  the  cotton-leaf  untouched, 
and  there  being  nothing  for  them  to  hide  under  when  they 
went  into  the  chrysalis  state,  they  suspended  themselves 
from  those  skeleton  leaves,  dangling  like  so  many  oblong, 
dark  beads. 

Just  as  the  spires  of  flame  from  a  conflagration  are  fearful 
to  contemplate  when  viewed  in  the  light  of  results,  and  yet 
are  none  the  less  beautiful,  considered  simply  as  a  spectacle, 
so  our  cotton-stalks,  while  telling  their  sad  story  of  destruc- 
tion by  the  army-worra,  thus  stripped  of  all  but  the  veins 
of  the  leaves,  and  festooned  with  chrysalids,  were,  as  a  spec- 


400  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

tacle,  beautiful  to  behold.  Under  the  sunlight  the  skeleton 
leaves  resembled  lace,  and  the  chrysalids  were  like  strings 
of  beads  festooning  the  same. 

In  the  course  of  the  next  ten  days,  a  fourth  generation 
of  millers  would  hatch  from  the  exj^osed  chrj^salis,  but 
finding,  as  they  would,  no  more  cotton-leaves  to  feed  on, 
and  not  feeding  on  any  thing  else,  they  would  starve  to 
death.  This  was  a  feature  in  the  career  of  the  worm  that 
Mr.  Sinton  had  not  mentioned.  I  rode  up  to  his  place  a 
few  days  after  our  last  calamity  for  the  purpose  of  mutual 
consolation,  and  was  pained  to  learn  that  he  had  been  vis- 
ited with  a  double  calamity,  the  greater  of  which  it  was 
hard  to  determine — one  was  the  worm-destruction,  the 
other  was  drought. 

The  front  of  Mr.  Sinton's  plantation  was  a  sandy  loam, 
which  is  a  soil  easy  of  cultivation,  and  in  which  the  cotton 
grows  rapidly  and  freely,  early  in  the  season,  but  is  apt  to 
burn  out  without  occasional  rains.  When  this  sandy  soil 
gets  too  dry  the  cotton  begins  to  shed  its  blossoms,  and  its 
partly-formed  bolls  shrivel  and  dry  up — from  which  time  no 
more  fruit  is  formed — this,  too,  while  the  leaves  may  be 
fresh,  and  the  stalk  growing.  But  after  awhile,  if  the 
drought  continues,  the  leaves  begin  to  shrivel,  further 
growth  of  the  stalk  is  arrested,  in  time  the  leaves  fall  off, 
and  the  plant  seems  to  die.  But  from  the  moment  it  begins 
to  shed  its  blossoms,  though  the  stalk  itself  may  grow,  its 
only  service  is  to  ripen  the  bolls  which  were  already  well- 
formed  before  the  shedding  of  the  blossoms  began. 

Sometimes  the  drought  is  ended  before  the  stalk  dies,  in 
which  case  it  will  continue  to  grow,  reaching  a  large  size, 
but  with  only  the  fruit  on  it  which  was  made  before  it  first 
commenced  to  dry  up. 

In  the  black,  or  "buck-shot"  land  the  crop  begins  slow, 
but  will  make  almost  without  rain,  never  burning  out. 
The  black  land  is  the  best  for  cotton,  growing  and  fruiting 
as  it  does  until  arrested  by  worm  or  frost. 


CROP   DESTROYED   BY   ARMY-WORM,  ETC.  401 

It  was  this  sandj-land  cotton,  beautiful  to  behold  early 
in  the  season,  but  very  apt  to  burn  out,  as  above  described, 
and  thus  an  uncertain  crop,  which  had  so  filled  our  eye 
with  admiration  during  the  two  previous  visits  we  had 
made  to  Mr.  Sinton's  place. 

This  fine-looking  crop  had  met  its  not  uncommon  fate, 
and  there  was  less  fruit  on  it  than  on  his  black-land  cotton, 
which  the  worm  had  eaten  up. 

"  How  did  you  come  out  witli  your  preparation  for  kill- 
ing the  worm  ?    Did  you  use  it  ?  " 

"Oh,  yes ;  we  used  it,"  said  Mr.  Lothard,  laughing  and 
blushing  at  the  same  time. 

"  Did  it  kill  the  worm  ?  " 

"  Lothard,  you  might  as  well  tell  Mr.  Harding  the  joko. 
It  will  get  out  anyway,"  said  Mr.  Sinton,  with  mischief  in 
his  eye. 

"Tes,  I  guess  we  better  tell  on  ourselves." 

"  On  yourself,  you  'd  better  say." 

"  I  believe  I  icas  the  author  of  the  discovery.  Well,  yes, 
it  killed  the  worm,  but  it  killed  the  cotton  also." 

"  Mr.  Lothard  went  out  before  breakfast  and  had  a  couple 
of  acres  sprinkled,  and  went  back  after  breakfast  to  see 
the  result ;  and  I  think  we  have  some  sprinkling-cans  for 
sale  now,  have  we  not?"  This  Mr.  Sinton  added  to  his 
partner's  statement,  with  the  keenest  relish,  good  natur- 
edly  enjoying  Mr.  Lothard's  discomfiture. 

As  an  offset,  I  told  how  the  worm  catastrophe  on  Hebron 
had  sent  Dobson  off  to  the  North,  as  well  as  Col.  Grey, 
which  was  the  reason  I  had  called  alone. 

The  direct  loss  from  this  visitation  of  the  army-worm, 
or  rather  from  the  fact  of  the  South  not  beinsi:  able  to  make 

CD 

a  crop  this  year  (there  was  reall}^  no  crop  to  destroy — the 
army-worm  simply  exposed  the  situation),  was  immense, 
but  compared  with  the  indirect  loss,  it  was  insignificant — 


402  A   YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

though  if  the  direct  loss  had  not  come,  the  indirect  loss 
would  not  have  been  great. 

The  indirect  loss  was  in  the  failure  of  the  planters  to  meet 
their  engagements  with  their  laborers,  and  the  demoraliza- 
tion resulting  therefrom.  The  negroes  were  badly  enough 
demoralized  when  they  were  hired  in  the  spring,  but  turned 
out,  as  they  were  now  all  over  the  South,  to  starve,  in  how 
much  worse  a  condition  they  would  be  when  the  time 
came  to  gather  them  up  for  the  purpose  of  making  a  new 
crop. 

All  hope  of  a  crop  this  year  being  now  dispelled,  each 
factor  put  his  foot  down  in  most  cases,  and  refused  further 
advances.  As  a  result,  plantations  were  abandoned,  and 
the  levees  and  railroads  were  lined  with  negro  families  dis- 
missed from  service,  because  their  employers  could  no 
longer  furnish  food  for  them.  The  negroes  believed  their 
masters  possessed  untold  wealth,  and  they  were  perfectly  in- 
capable of  understanding  that  they  were  dismissed  from 
sheer  necessity.  In  many  instances  the  same  hunger  which 
awaited  the  negroes  awaited  their  white  employers.  If  the 
latter  were  to  be  blamed,  because  of  a  determination  early 
in  the  season  not  to  do  fairly  with  the  negroes — not  from 
lack  of  ability,  but  because  of  their  non-acceptance  of  the 
situation — they  were  now  equally  to  be  pitied,  the  crop 
failure  having  rendered  the  carrying  out  of  their  contracts 
impossible. 

Then,  there  was  the  demoralization  of  the  planters. 
Most  of  them  had  staked  all  their  ready  money  on  the 
crop,  while  very  many  had  exhausted  their  credit,  fre- 
quently mortgaging  their  plantations  in  doing  so.  Al- 
most a  total  crop  failure  was  to  be  the  result.  There  was 
nothing  for  the  laborer,  and  there  would  be  but  little  for 
the  planter,  when  the  crop  was  all  gathered,  which  little 
would  have  to  go  to  the  factors  on  account  of  advances. 

Many  of  the  new-comers  contemplated  an  early  aban- 
donment of  the  field,  and  a  return  to  the  North.     But  with 


CROP   DESTROYED   BY   ARMY-WORM,    ETC.  403 


the  Southercn  planters  it  was  diflfcrent.  They  had  no 
other  home,  no  other  occupation.  There  was  nothing  to 
do  but  to  pick  their  flints  and  trj'  again.  All  that  could 
be  said  against  them  now  was  that  they  would  have  been 
in  better  condition  if  they  had  paid  less  attention  to  the 
President's  policy,  honestly  accepting  the  situation,  and  if 
their  habits  of  life  had  been  different.  But  more  than  all 
was  their  desperate  situation  due  to  the  condition  of  the 
soil,  and  to  their  own  and  the  negroes'  ignorance  ;  so  that, 
while  they  were  at  fault,  they  were  still  more  the  victims 
of  misfortune,  and  as  such  the  Southern  people  were  now 
truly  an  object  of  pity. 

If  Providence  had  smiled  on  this  region  in  1866,  by  giv- 
ing it  a  reasonable  croj),  sectional  politics,  injustice  to  the 
negro  and  the  new-comer,  bitterness  of  heart,  and  hatred 
of  the  government  would  all  have  disappeared.  In  the 
absence  of  a  good  crop,  the  result  was  that  these  were  all 
intensified. 

It  is  natural  for  mankind  to  seek  excuses  for  their  mis- 
fortunes, other  than  their  natural  causes.  This  is  particu- 
larly true  of  a  people  like  those  of  the  South,  with  their 
passions  inflamed,  and  governed,  not  so  much  by  reason,  as 
by  impulse. 

If  the  reader  will  understand  that  this  crop  failure,  fol- 
lowing upon  the  losses  incident  to  the  war,  thoroughly  and 
completely  j)rostrated  the  South,  he  will  be  able  to  apj^re- 
ciate  its  pitiful  situation  at  this  time. 

What  a  spectacle  it  was  !  Looking  out  upon  the  worm- 
eaten  fields,  at  the  skeleton  cotton-stalks — sickly,  spindling, 
and  small  even  before  the  last  visitation  which  now  had 
stripped  them  of  all  except  the  few  mature  bolls,  the 
only  fruit  left ;  the  choked-up  ditches ;  the  huge  2)lanta- 
tions,  overgrown  with  briers,  cotton-wood,  willows,  and 
in  many  places  bearing  the  marks  of  overflow  from  the 
waters  of  the  ^Mississippi,  through  the  numerous  ugly  gaps 
in  the  levees  j  at  the  absence  of  forage,  meat,  and  meal ;  at 


404  A   TEAR   OF   WRECK. 

the  books  of  the  cotton-factors,  and  the  country  merchants, 
who  had  supplied  the  plantations,  disclosing,  as  they  did, 
monstrous  indebtedness,  with  no  crops  in  the  field  to  cancel 
the  same  ;  at  the  fact  that  there  was  absolutely  nothing  left 
but  the  land,  buildings,  mules,  and  implements,  and  these  in 
most  cases  heavily  mortgaged ;  and  then,  above  and  over 
all,  at  the  recently  enfranchised  negro,  with  the  problem 
yet  unsolved,  as  to  whether  he  could  be  made  an  efficient 
free  laborer  ; — if  all  this  could  have  been  understood,  some 
idea  of  the  utter  and  complete  prostration  throughout  the 
South  might  have  been  gained,  and  the  country  would 
have  had  more  patience  with  this  terribly  smitten  section 
than  it  has  had. 

There  was  but  one  source  of  relief — through  the  same 
soil  and  labor  which  had  now  so  grievously  disappointed 
all.  Many  said,  with  pale  faces,  "  We  have  utterly 
failed  to  make  cotton  ;  is  there  no  other  crop  which  these 
lands  will  produce?"  Many  talked  of  broom-corn,  castor- 
beans,  etc.,  but  cotton  was  the  idol  of  the  South,  and  the 
2")eople  were  not  yet  ready  to  break  it  into  pieces. 

The  worst  feature  in  the  whole  case  was  the  utter  want 
of  appreciation  on  the  part  of  the  negroes,  that  they  had 
made  a  crop  failure  ;  that  the  only  source  of  revenue  to 
the  planter  was  his  crop,  and,  this  having  failed,  in  the 
nature  of  things  there  must  be  great  distress ;  and  so, 
when  pay  and  rations  failed  to  come  with  perfect  prompt- 
ness they  attributed  it  to  an  intention  on  the  part  of  the 
planter  to  defraud  them.  They  would  not  consider  for  an 
instant  that  it  was  from  lack  of  funds. 

"  Look  at  de  crop  in  de  fiel',''  would  be  their  answer, 
"  our  old  masters  have  got  heaps  and  heaps  of  money,  and 
we  knows  it,"  and  so  on. 

I^ever  was  the  utter  darkness  of  intellect  of  the  recently 
enfranchised  negro  more  apparent  than  now.  Here  were  the 
smitten  fields,  all  but  barren  of  any  crop,  due  in  part  to  their 
defective  labor  ;  the  money  and  credit  of  the  planter  gone, 


CROP   DESTROYED    BY    ARMY-WORM,    ETC.  405 

with  nothing  to  show  for  it ;  and  yet  they  did  not  seem  to 
have  the  faintest  idea  of  the  general  and  fearful  wreck.  If 
they  were  not  fed  and  paid,  it  was  because  their  employer 
did  not  want  to  do  it — this  was  their  conclusion  ;  and  so 
the  breach  between  them  was  widening. 

The  planter  made  mistakes,  and  grave  ones,  but  in  the 
midst  of  a  conflagration  how  many  feather-beds  are  ten- 
derl}^  carried  down  stairs,  while  the  looking-glasses  are 
rudely  thrown  from  the  window!  It  was  a  spectacle  of 
general  destruction,  not  less  frightful  than  where  this  has 
happened,  and  the  sufferers  were  scarcely  more  account- 
able for  what  the}^  did. 

The  trouble  with  the  negro  was  utter  inability  to  realize 
the  state  of  affairs,  to  understand  he  Jiad  made  no  crop, 
and  that  the  season  was  as  near  as  possible  a  total  failure. 
Those  of  us  who  had  bought  land  were  chained  to  the 
situation.  In  our  own  case,  to  abandon  the  country  was  to 
lose  our  first  payment  of  827,500,  and  so  the  thing  was  not 
to  be  thought  of  for  an  instant,  though  there  was  the  sec- 
ond payment  of  equal  amount  with  current  expenses  to  bo 
met— how,  was  yet  in  the  future. 

We  felt  that  we  had  learned  something  about  planting 
cotton,  though  at  a  terrible  cost,  and  unless  we  continued  on, 
utilizing  the  knowledge  acquired  by  planting  another  crop, 
our  year  of  struggle  would  be  thrown  away. 

"No,  we  will  never  do  this,"  I  said  to  myself  all  alone  in 
our  cabin.  "  The  production  of  cotton  is  a  legitimate  en- 
terprise ;  this  land  produced  it  before  the  war,  and  it  will 
do  it  again.     With  equally  good  mules  and  the  same  land, 

if  a  crop  is  not  made,  it  will  be  due  to  one  of  two  causes 

the  labor  bestowed,  or  Providence,  and  has  not  the  Al- 
mighty pledged  us  seed  time  and  harvest?  We  will  guard 
against  the  first  by  making  such  a  contract  as  will  force  the 
loss  resulting  from  a  failure,  unless  from  Providential 
causes  such  as  storms  or  army-worms,  upon  the  laborers; 
but  before  we  can  conscientiously  do  this  we  must  restore 


406  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

the  ditches  on  Hebron.  Our  cultivation  this  year  will,  in 
a  manner,  redeem  the  land  from  its  weed-ridden  state,  and 
with  the  ditches  opened  for  drainage,  we  shall  have  done 
our  part.  Our  contract  with  our  laborers  runs  until  the  first 
of  January.  The  crop  we  shall  have  to  pick  will  not  re- 
quire near  all  of  that  time.  Having  agreed  to,  we  will  keep 
them  at  work,  and  for  the  time  they  are  not  picking  they 
must  ditch,  l^ext  year  our  place  will  be  in  a  condition  to 
make  a  crop,  and  we  will  hold  our  laborers  to  it.  We  have 
lost  our  money  here,  and  right  here  we  will  stay  until  we 
find  it." 

"  Did  you  speak?"  George  called  out. 

"  No,  not  to  you,"  I  said,  a  little  confused  at  being  caught 
thinking  aloud. 

That  night  1  heard  George  telling  Mary,  "  De  boss  done 
git  so  lonesome  dat  he  talks  to  hisself." 

Having  taken  my  resolution  I  proceeded  to  make  it 
known  to  our  hands,  and  they  acquiesced  at  once,  declaring 
they  were  all  born  ditchers. 

It  was  necessary  to  order  shovels,  which  I  did  at  once, 
and  in  the  meantime,  until  they  came,  or  the  cotton  opened 
suflScient  to  commence  picking,  I  put  our  force  to  cutting 
out  the  growth  in  the  ditches  and  getting  them  ready  for 
the  shovels. 


CHAPTEE  LXXIX. 


OUR   LOG-CABIN. 


The  destruction  of  the  crop  by  the  army-worm  left  noth- 
ing to  fear  from  frost,  which  we  had  hitherto  dreaded  and 
had  hoped  would  postpone  its  comicg  until  late  in  the  sea- 
son, so  as  to  give  our  cotton  the  longest  possible  time  to 


OUR  LOG-CABIN.  407 

fruit.  On  the  contrary-,  I  now  ardently  desired  its  coming 
as  the  signal  for  the  commencement  of  the  healthy  season, 
when  we  should  again  breathe  a  wholesome  atmosphere, 
and  my  fiimily  could  return  to  Hebron  with  perfect  safety, 
so  far  as  health  was  concerned.  Scarcely,  however,  had 
this  latter  thought  warmed  and  quickened  my  blood  than 
it  was  chilled  again,  when  I  remembered  that  the  only 
place  I  had  for  them  was  our  room  in  the  overseer's  cabin. 
And,  looking  out  upon  our  worm-eaten  and  weed-ridden 
fields,  I  saw  the  sad  but  unmistakable  evidence  that  there 
was  no  crop  in  sight  to  justify  the  expenditure  of  even  a 
penny  in  the  building  of  a  new  house. 

In  the  early  days  of  our  enterprise  it  had  never  entered 
our  heads  that  we  should  not  have  each  a  nice  little  home  on 
the  plantation  for  our  fiimilies  in  the  fall.  We  had  said  good- 
bye to  our  dear  ones  at  the  village  landing,  with  the  certain 
belief  that  when  we  welcomed  them  again  it  would  be  at  the 
Hebron  landing,  and  to  that  new  home. 

During  my  rides  over  the  plantation  with  Dobson,  we 
had  talked  over  our  locations  and  decided  upon  them;  but 
now,  alas  !  so  far  as  our  cotton  crop  could  help  us,  our 
castles  in  the  air  could  not  possibly  take  substantial  shape 
and  foundation,  and  it  looked  as  if,  for  this  year  at  least, 
they  were  not  to  be  any  thing  more  than  pleasant  dreams. 
If  at  the  time  we  purchased  Hebron  we  had  been  asked 
how  much  we  should  expect  to  spend  for  our  plantation 
homes,  we  would  unhesitatingly  have  said,  "  Not  less  than 
five  thousand  dollars  each."     That  was  the  day  of  promise. 
The  day  of  performance  was  now  at  hand.     The  journey 
from  daylight  to  darkness  was  in  the  interval.    How  gladly 
now  we  would  have  taken  a  naught  off  the  spring  estimate 
for  our  houses.     Yes,  how  happy  we  should  be  if  we  could 
see  in  our  smitten  fields  the  prospect  of  a  crop  sufficient  to 
make  our  second  payment  and  meet  our  current  expenses. 
As  I  looked  our  situation  squarely  in  the  face,  not  a  ray 
of  sunshine  lightened  it;  and  yet  we  must  have  a  home,  if 


408  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

ever  80  humble.  But  whence  was  the  money  to  come  to  pay 
for  it? 

But  for  my  partner  we  might  manage  to  get  along  in  the 
.verseer's  cabin  for  another  year,  although  the  discomforts 
would  be  great.  Not  that  I  feared  Mrs.  Harding  would 
object  to  it ;  I  knew  her  well  enough  to  feel  certain  that 
she  would  gladly  accept  any  thing  which  would  secure 
us  a  shelter  from  rain  and  storm  and  reunite  our  family. 
And  then  in  my  misery  I  thought  we  should  be  very  happy 
if  only  we  could  be  assured  of  this  wretched  place.  The 
more  I  considered  it,  however,  the  more  I  felt  certain  that 
even  this  boon  would  be  denied  us.  IS^aturally,  Dobson 
would  recover  from  the  shock  of  our  disappointments  suf- 
ficiently to  wish  to  return,  and  with  him,  of  course,  the 
healthy  season  being  at  hand,  would  come  his  wife.  I  knew 
1  hat  neither  of  us  would  feel  it  right  for  himself  to  occupy  our 
room  in  the  overseer's  cabin  with  his  family  to  the  exclu- 
sion of  the  other.  Besides,  we  needed  every  inch  of  this 
cabin  for  the  general  plantation  business,  and  we  could  not 
afford  to  allow  either  or  both  of  the  partners  to  devote  it  to 
personal  uses.  And  yet  there  seemed  no  other  way  to  se- 
cure a  roof  for  us. 

Once,  in  my  great  desperation,  I  contemplated  writing 
Dobson,  to  ask  how  it  would  do  to  cut  our  room  in  the 
cabin  in  two,  with  a  partition,  his  family  taking  half  and 
mine  half,  or  an  8x9  apartment  each.  As  I  revolved 
this  plan,  I  found  myself  thinking  what  a  bright  spot  this 
8x9  room  would  be.  Talking  to  myself,  as  I  had  learned 
to  do  in  my  solitude,  there  fell  upon  my  ear  the  exclama- 
tion, in  my  squeaky  voice  : 

"  Would  n't  it  be  cozy?" 

Then  I  remembered  the  Dobsons'  brown-stone  front  and 
the  Harding  residence,  in  their  splendid  neighborhood, 
which  our  wives  would  have  to  leave  for  such  a  place.  At 
which  my  voice  was  again  heard  soliloquizing :  '•  Such  a 
step  would  be  just  grounds  for  a  divorce."     But  what  bet- 


OUR   LOG-CABIN.  409 

ter  could  be  done  was  the  anxious  question.  Look  •which- 
ever way  I  might,  this  seemed  the  only  alternative.  And 
then  all  the  bile  engendered,  in  my  system  would  become 
aroused  at  the  thought  that  this  was  the  only  way  open. 

One  day,  however,  while  I  was  still  fretting  over  the 
matter,  I  chanced  to  ride  to  the  upper  end  of  the  planta- 
tion, out  in  front  of  the  levee,  where  there  was  a  young 
cotton-wood  thicket.  The  leaves  of  these  long,  lithe,  rapid- 
growing  trees  glistened  in  the  sunlight.  The  facCis,  I  used 
frequently  to  ride  up  into  this  grove — that  it  was  going  north  - 
ward,  and  took  me  a  mile  nearer  ray  family,  was  enough 
to  make  it  a  favorite  ride.  How  oflen  I  sat  on  my  horse 
here,  as  I  did  upon  that  memorable  night,  when  the  '-Dan 
Able,"  with  its  precious  load,  j^assed  out  of  my  sight, 
around  the  bend  above,  and  looked  longingly  up  the  river. 
Then,  if  perchance  a  northward-bound  boat  should  steam 
by,  would  again  come  the  eager  desire  to  hail  her  for  pass- 
age, and  be  forever  done  with  this  hapless  experience. 

Oh  !  the  lonely  feeling  of  the  pioneer,  as  his  thoughts  go 
back  to  the  home  of  civilization  from  his  hard  life  in  the 
wilderness  !  Who  can  realize  it,  except  one  who  has  drunk 
of  the  same  cup  ?  Such  was  my  thought  upon  this  partic- 
ular morning. 

"  Yes,  this  is  in  every  respect  a  joioneer  experience,"  my 
voice  squeaked  out.  "  Well,  pioneers  live  in  log-cabins,"  it- 
added.  "  If  you  are  a  pioneer,  and  want  a  home  for  your 
family,  go  build  them  a  log-cabin."  Then  a  breeze  swayed 
the  cotton-wood  saplings,  and  they  bowed  to  me,  as  if  to 
say  :  '•  Here  we  are  ;  cut  us  down  and  hew  us — here  are 
the  logs  for  your  cabin."  It  was  all  clear  to  me.  A  log- 
cabin  it  should  be. 

Not  less  than  a  home  for  my  family  did  I  need  a  thor- 
oughly distracting  occupation.  Living  in  the  midst  of  the 
scene  of  our  terrible  disappointment,  without  a  single  con- 
genial companion — my  system  filled  with  malaria,  the 
characteristic  feature  of  which  is  melancholy,  be  the  suf 


410  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

ferer's  surroundings  ever  so  bright  (and  mine  were  ever  so 
dark),  wbicli  intensified  the  feeling;  with  our  financial  ne- 
cessities looming  up  in  our  pathway,  to  -be  in  some  way 
other  than  by  our  crop  satisfied — all  these  had  their  natural 
effect  to  fill  me  with  sensations  of  desperate  gloom.  The 
only  hope  was  to  get  out  of  this  rut.  No  sooner  had  I  de- 
cided upon  building  a  log-cabin  than  I  seemed  to  be  lifted 
into  a  new  atmosphere. 

''  Not  jIs  Solomon  built  the  temple  will  I  build  our  log- 
cabin,"  I  said  to  myself,  as  my  spur  struck  the  side  of  my 
horse,  sending  him  homeward  on  a  keen  gallop,  "  but  just 
as  pioneers  build  their  cabins  will  I  build  ours.  Their 
hands  fell  the  trees,  hew  the  logs,  haul  them,  2:)ut  them  in 
place,  chink  them  with  mud  and  sticks,  rive  out  puncheons 
for  floors,  etc.  All  this  I,  John  Harding,  will  do,  and  when 
I  welcome  my  family  to  their  plantation  home,  I  will  be 
able  to  tell  them  that  my  own  hands  wrought  it,  and  there 
will  be  blisters  and  calloused  skin  in  their  hollows  as 
proof" 

I  never  stopped  to  think  that  this  was  not  the  Southern 
home  of  my  dreams.  My  absorbing  thought  was  that  I 
had  hit  upon  a  plan  for  the  accomplishment  of  my  present 
desire,  a  home  for  my  family. 

The  consummation  of  the  plan  was  the  occupation 
which  I  so  much  needed. 

The  architect's  task  was  the  work  of  an  evening.  Be- 
fore bed-time  I  had  our  cabin  on  paper.  It  was  a  labor  of 
love,  and  the  time  occupied  did  not  seem  an  hour.  Eut 
George  came  in  to  say  it  was  '•  pow'ful  late,  done  pas'  mid- 
night." 

"  My  !  can  it  be  that  late  ?  "  I  answered.  "  It  has  been 
a  very  short  evening."  Then  I  showed  George  my  draw- 
ing, telling  him  what  I  proposed. 

"  De  Lo'd,  sir  !  dat's  easier  said  'n  done — but  I  knows 
you's  got  de  courage  to  put  it  through.  Hit  '11  be  pow'ful 
nice  to  hab  de  missus  and  de  chil'en  here  agin,  even  ef  dey 


OUR   LOa-CABIN.  411 

hab  to  lib  in  a  log-cabin.  But  dat's  a  pow'fiil  fine  log- 
cabin,  in  dat  pictur'.  Dat's  nice  'nuff  hou.sc  for  anybody," 
George  added,  continuing  to  eye  the  draft  with  admiration. 

"  My  grandfiither  was  a  pioneer  settler  in  Ohio,"  I  said 
to  George;  '« and,  when  a  small  boy,  I  used  to  live  with 
him,  and  that  is  where  I  learned  what  little  I  know  of 
fiirming.  I  remember  his  log-cabin  so  well.  This  is  mod- 
eled after  it.  One  thing  about  it  I  remember  particularly 
well.  I  used  to  go  to  bed  on  cold  winter  nights,  to  wake 
up  in  the  morning  and  find  streaks  of  snow  scattered  over 
the  bed-cover  and  along  the  floor,  which  had  sifted  through 
the  rude  roof  and  chinks  in  the  logs.  How  my  breath 
would  steam  out  through  the  cold  !  Oh,  George,  how  nice  it 
would  be  to  have  a  taste  of  that  experience  down  here  now  ! 
How  it  would  purify  the  atmosphere,  and  bring  health 
again  to  this  sickly  country:  It  was  not  very  pleasant  to 
have  to  jump  out  of  bed,  in  my  bare  feet,  on  the  snow- 
sprinkled  floor,  and  to  have  snow  from  the  comforter  sifted 
on  the  exposed  parts  of  my  body,  but  it  was  wholesome, 
and,  as  I  now  feel,  I  would  jump  into  a  snow-bank  with 
less  clothes  on  than  when,  in  my  grandfather's  cabin,  I 
jumped,  out  of  my  warm  feather-bed  nest,  upon  the  cold, 
snow-streaked  floor." 

By  this  time,  George  was  pulling  his  coat-collar  up  about 
his  ears,  and  he  exclaimed  : 

"  Dat  sort  o'  talk  puts  me  all  in  a  shiver  o'  cold." 

"  Well,  good-night,  George ;  if  you  'ro  cold,  go  to  bed 
and  warm  up.  I  will  do  the  same,  although  I  'm  not  shiv- 
ering with  cold." 

Ever  since  the  destruction  of  our  crop  by  the  army- 
worm,  my  sleep  at  night  had  been  broken  by  gloomy 
thoughts  concerning  our  ruined  prospects,  and  in  the  vain 
effort  to  devise  some  way  out  of  them.  To-night,  as  my 
head  pressed  the  pillow,  it  was  full  of  my  log-cabin  scheme, 
and  my  brain  was  so  excited  that  I  spent  the  night  build- 
ing it  in  fancy.     I  also  arranged  the  furniture  in  it,  and 


412  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK, 

welcomed  my  family  to  its  occupancy.  In  the  darkness  of 
the  night  I  fancied  I  could  see  the  fire  crackling  upon  the 
hearth,  with  the  Harding  family  seated  around  it.  It  was 
only  when  day  came,  that  these  delightful  illusions  were 
dispelled  by  the  thought  that  many  would  be  the  hard 
blows  before  the  vision  of  my  dreams  could  become  a 
charming  reality. 

The  following  day,  three  axes  swung  busily  in  the  cot- 
ton-wood thicket,  and  by  night  a  number  of  the  trees, 
which  in  the  morning  had  reared  their  young  heads  proudly 
heavenward,  lay  prone  upon  the  ground.  My  own  ax  was 
the  busiest  one  of  the  three,  and  as  I  plied  my  happy  task,  I 
made  an  estimate  that  each  blow  brought  my  family  a  foot 
nearer  to  me.  Not  a  moment  was  there  now  for  brooding 
or  gloomy  thoughts,  while  wholesome  hunger  and  sleep 
were  the  natural  results  of  this  heavy,  manual  labor. 

As  day  followed  day,  our  cabin  took  shape  and  form  un- 
der the  sturdy  blows  which  willing  hands  struck  for  it. 
It  was  a  proud  moment  for  me  to  find,  as  I  did  at  the  end 
of  the  fifth  day,  our  logs  all  chopped,  hewed,  and  notched. 
Then  came  the  hauling  of  them,  and  the  getting  of  blocks 
for  the  foundation. 

The  location  selected  by  me  was  on  the  spot  where  we 
had  commenced  our  cotton-planting  in  the  spring.  It  was 
one  of  the  spots  where  the  cotton  had  grown  luxuriantly. 
It  was  necessary  to  clear  a  space  for  our  cabin,  and  I  pulled 
up  the  cotton-stalks  regretfully,  feeling  that,  with  our  slen- 
der show  for  cotton,  we  could  not  afford  to  destroy  a  sin- 
gle boll. 

I  carefully  laid  the  stalks  at  one  side,  where  we  could 
pick  out  the  cotton  as  the  sun  cracked  open  the  bolls.  It 
was  a  proud  moment  when,  with  a  tape-line,  I  laid  off  the 
ground,  and  drove  the  pegs  for  the  corners.  The  fresh 
cotton-ridges  in  our  prospective  yard  made  the  hauling  of 
our  material  rough  enough  ;  but,  recollecting  the  object  to 
be  accomplished,  I  relished  it  keenly,  bearing  a  large  share 


OUR    LOG-CABIN.  413 

in  the  task  of  helping  to  lift  each  log  on  and  off  the  wao-on, 
and  frequently  riding  the  lead  mule,  in  true  teamster  style. 

Knowing  that  General  Dobson  would  also  need  a  house, 
I  had  not  proceeded  far  in  the  erection  of  our  own  before 
I  decided  to  detail  Billy,  with  a  couple  of  extra  hands,  to 
build  a  duplicate  on  the  spot  he  had  selected.  Thus  the 
two  cabins  w^ere  under  w\ny  at  the  same  time — ours  being 
a  little  in  the  lead.  These  preparations  must  not,  how- 
ever, interfere  with  our  farm  duties,  so  there  was  the  gen- 
eral superintendence  of  these  added  to  ray  task,  all  of  which 
filled  up  my  time  to  its  utmost, 

I  could  now  show  the  horny  hand  of  toil,  and  my  bronzed 
features  told  their  story  of  exposure,  while  my  squeaking 
voice  yet  gave  evidence  that  I  was  a  victim  to  the  influences 
of  the  climate. 

This  strain  upon  me  was  just  what  I  needed,  however,  to 
keep  me  out  of  the  "  slough  of  despond."  The  very  mo- 
ment 1  stoj^ped  to  think  there  would  come  up  the  picture 
of  our  year  of  failure,  and,  passing  from  that  to  the  future 
the  anxious  inquiry  would  arise,  ''How  are  w^e  to  get 
through  the  next  year  ?  " 

Sunday  was  a  day  greatly  to  be  dreaded.  There  were  no 
religious  exercises,  except  such  as  those  already  described, 
which  the  negroes  engaged  in,  and  the  very  sight  of  which, 
presenting  such  a  sad  spectacle  of  benighted  ignorance, 
made  one  feel  gloomy.  Outside  of  this  attempt  at  wor- 
ship, and  the  village  spire,  with  its  vacant  temple  below, 
there  was  nothing  to  indicate  any  Christian  observance  of 
the  Sabbath  here.  On  the  contrary,  the  occasional  glimpses 
I  had  of  whisky-drinking,  card -playing,  and  general 
debauchery  at  the  village  landing,  on  this  day,  indicated 
that  the  customs  of  this  section  had  especially  set  it  apart 
for  such  sinful  purposes. 

As  for  reading  matter,  I  had  long  since  exhausted  our 
supply?  ^oing  over  it  time  and  again,  even  down  to  the  pat- 
ent-medicine almanac.     We  used  to  get,  by  the  Saturday 


41-4  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

evening  packets,  New  Orleans  and  Yicksburg  newspapers, 
but  so  full  of  bitterness  were  they  against  the  North  tbat  it 
was  only  an  aggrevation  to  read  them.  If  we  were  to  judge 
from  these  papers,  the  great  mass  of  people  in  the  North, 
led  by  President  Johnson,  were  heartily  sorry  for  what  had 
happened  to  the  South,  during  the  war,  and  they  were 
about  to  give  them  back  all  they  had  lost.  The  few  in  the 
North  who  did  not  feel  in  that  way,  were,  according  to 
these  papers,  so  many  cut-throats,  thieves,  and  villains. 

This  fearful  Sunday  ordeal  alwaj'S  left  me  demoralized. 
Weary  with  our  labors  of  the  week,  I  slept  as  much  of  it 
away  as  possible,  managing  generally  to  get  rid  of  two  or 
three  hours  in  this  way ;  but  the  effect  was  nearly  all  lost  by 
the  wakeful  Sunday  night  which  followed.  Thus,  in  spite 
of  all  my  efforts  to  the  contrary,  Monday  morning  would 
find  me  fretted  at  our  situation,  as  the  result  of  my  Sun- 
day's brooding. 

Continued  action,  not  a  moment  for  thought,  was  the 
medicine  I  required,  and  Sunday  gave  me  the  very  opposite, 
so  that  as  often  as  it  came  I  sickened  under  its  influence, 
and  scarcely  would  I  recover  from  one  paroxysm  before  the 
next  came.  Oh,  how  ardently  I  longed  for  the  Sunday  in- 
fluences I  had  parted  with  in  the  North.  If  it  should  ever 
be  my  fate  to  resume  them,  how  I  would  prize  them  !  No 
frontiersman  was  ever  more  completely  excluded  from  all 
church  privileges  than  I  was  here.  I  used  frequently  to 
question,  whether  it  were  not  better  to  work  right  along, 
forgetting  Sunday,  than  to  drone  and  fret  around  one  day 
in  seven  as  I  did. 

There  was  another  experience  which  was  particularly 
exasperating.  I  seldom  now  visited  the  village  landing,  or 
came  in  contact  with  Southern  people ;  but  when  I  did, 
there  was  in  the  manner  of  most  of  them,  more  than  ever, 
an  intimation  that  we  were  at  best  simply  tolerated,  while, 
with  a  few,  it  was  unmistakable  repulsion  and  scorn. 

Be  it  remembered,  I  am  now  speaking  of  the  period  prior 


OUR   LOG-CABIN.  415 

to  reconstruction,  when  the  State  and  county  governments 
were  entirely  in  the  hands  of  the  old  citizens.  We  had 
never  given  utterance  to  apolitical  opinion,  but  had  simply 
come  into  the  country,  purchased  a  farm  and  gone  to  work. 
If  immigration  is  ever  a  blessing  our  immigration  was, 
and  yet  here  we  were  simply  tolerated,  not  unfrequently 
frowned  at  by  the  people  in  whose  midst  we  were  located. 
It  is  said  that  you  can  take  an  intelligent  child,  and  by 
constantly  treating  him  as  having  no  sense,  in  time  make 
an  idiot  of  him.  In  the  same  way,  you  can  continue  to 
charge  an  honest  man  with  dishonesty  until  he  comes  to 
half-believe  it  himself.  Similar  influences  were  at  work  upon 
me.  We  had  made  our  location  with  the  best  intentions, 
and  with  the  sincere  feeling  that  our  coming  was  a  gain  to 
the  locality.  Indeed,  I  knew  this  to  be  so  by  the  proof 
of  statistics.  The  result  of  our  reception  and  treatment 
was  to  cause  me  to  distrust  myself.  Thus,  in  passing 
through  the  village  one  day,  I  distinctly  heard  one  of  the 
intolerant  loafers,  who  had  frowned  in  my  face  as  I  brushed 
by  him,  say  to  another  of  his  class : 

"  Did  you  notice  what  an  ugly  eye  that  Yankee  has  in 
his  head?" 

I  passed  out  of  hearing  before  the  reply  was  given,  and 
tried  to  forget  it ;  but  when  I  reached  home,  one  of  the  first 
things  I  did  was  to  peer  into  a  mirror,  and  study  my  eye, 
to  see  if  I  could  detect  any  thing  ugly  in  its  expression,  ex- 
asperated at  myself  to  think  that  the  remark  had  im- 
pressed me  so  deeply  as  to  cause  such  an  inquiry  on  ray 
part. 

This  offensive  warof  sentiment,  falling  upon  us  as  silently 
and  as  unwholesomely  as  an  epedemic  settles  u^Don  a  land, 
pervaded  my  system,  and  frequently  it  found  me  defend- 
ing myself,  and  again  inquiring  whether  there  was  not 
something  in  my  character  to  justify  the  Southern  people 
in  their  mistreatment  of  and  intolerance  toward  me.  Then 
I  would  try  to  recall  the 'esteem  in  which  I  had  always 


416  A   TEAR   OF   WRECK. 

been  held  at  our  late  home,  which  would  tone  me  up  again. 
But,  being  thus  put  on  the  defense,  at  the  next  instant  the 
feeling  would  return. 

I  mention  this  because,  while  building  our  log-cabin,  I 
had  signal  evidence  of  the  feeling  toward  me.  The  autumn 
elections  were  at  hand  in  the  North,  and  the  Southern  peo- 
ple had  been  confidently  looking  forward  for  them  to 
demonstrate  the  great  reaction  in  their  favor,  when,  as  one 
after  another  State  returned  heavy  majorities  against  them, 
they  became  savage.  I  visited  the  village  to  get  some 
nails  for  our  cabin,  just  after  some  particularly  over- 
whelming opposition  returns  had  reached  them.  I  was 
met  nowhere  outside  of  the  village  merchant's  store  with 
any  thing  but  frowns,  and  savage  utterances  which  would 
not  be  proper  to  repeat  here,  but  which  convinced  me  that 
there  was  a  strong  disposition  to  wreak  their  vengeance  for 
the  victories  in  the  North  upon  me. 

''Better  hurry  home,"  whisj^ered  the  village  merchant 
to  me,  as  he  wrapped  up  the  nails.  "  The  boys  are  feel- 
ing ugly  over  the  election  returns,  and  there  is  no  telling 
what  they  might  do  if  they  should  get  sight  of  a  Northern 
man." 

I  heeded  the  warning,  hurrying  back  to  the  plantation  ; 
but  with  such  feelings  !  Fleeing  from  personal  danger — 
for  what?  Not  because  I  had  excited  any  body  by  boast- 
ing at  the  village  of  recent  victories  in  the  North.  I  had 
not  even  mentioned  them.  They  were  not  even  in  my 
thoughts.  I  had  never  even  declared  my  politics.  No,  my 
offense  was  that  I  had  recently  immigrated  from  a  section 
which,  at  its  latest  election,  was  casting  a  majority  of 
votes  against  their  party,  and  this  was  sufficient  ground  for 
the  murder  of  one  of  our  class,  if  they  should  chance  to 
encounter  him. 

1  gave  my  navy-tobacco  vigorous  puffs  that  evening,  in 
my  lonely  room,  as  I  recalled  the  state  of  affairs  at  the  vil- 
lage landing,  and  then  I  pinched  myself  to  see  if  I  were 


THE    COMMENCEMENT   OF   COTTON-PICKING.  417 

really  John  Harding,  and,  looking  into  the  glass,  I  read  the 
sad  truth,  that  it  was  only  his  wreck. 

Again  and  again  would  I  come  back  to  the  question, 
"  What  have  I  done  that  I  should  be  thus  treated  ?  As 
a  matter  of  fact  am  I  an  objectionable  character,  to  bo 
simply  tolerated,  frowned  upon,  or  murdered,  if  I  do  n't 
hurry  away  from  the  village  landing  when  I  go  there  to 
make  a  purchase,  if  I  chance  to  find  the  people  in  a  pas- 
sion, because  an  election  in  another  section  has  gone 
against  their  wishes  ?  What  a  life  it  is  to  be  sure.  If  I 
am  spoken  pleasantly  to  at  all,  it  is  by  stealth — and  then  to 
hear  that  men  have  been  ostracized,  yes,  murdered,  be- 
cause they  extend  to  us  the  courtesy  of  some  sort  of  a 
welcome  !  "  Always  upon  such  occasions  would  come  up 
the  recollection  of  Chapman's  tragic  fate  for  associating 
with  us. 


CHAPTER  LXX. 

THE    COMMENCEMENT   OF    COTTON-PICKING. 

The  full-grown  cotton-boll,  just  before  it  is  ready  to 
open  and  expose  the  fleecy  staple  ripe  for  the  picker's  dex- 
terous fingers,  bears  a  strong  resemblance  to  the  hickory- 
nut  in  the  hull,  except  that  it  is  about  the  size  of  the  wal- 
nut, and  elongated  like  the  butter-nut.  As  the  cotton 
ripens  in  the  boll,  the  latter  loses  its  green  and  assumes  a 
russet  hue.  The  seams  of  the  pod  become  more  and  more 
distinct  as  maturity  approaches,  while  the  rind  is  glossy 
and  has  the  appearance  of  being  stretched  to  its  utmost  by 
the  rapidly  swelling  fruit  within.  Then  comes  the  burst- 
ing of  the  boll. 

There  are  four  or  five  pods  to  each  boll ; — first,  are  seen 
18* 


418  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

the  tiniest  lines  of  pure  white,  increasing  for  several  days, 
until  the  pods  are  pressed  back  by  the  swelling  cotton,  as 
the  breezes  open  out  their  folds;  finally  hanging  down  in 
graceful  waves,  ready  for  the  picker's  hands. 

First  it  is  the  advanced  bolls,  the  pioneers,  which  open 
out  their  singular  and  beautiful  fruit,  here  and  there,  one 
or  more  on  a  stalk — this,  be  it  remembered,  while  the  plant 
is  still  blossoming.  Thus,  as  before  stated,  all  stages,  from 
the  blossom  to  the  ripe  cotton,  are  seen  upon  the  same 
stalk — that  is,  such  is  the  case  when  the  army -worm  does 
not  come,  as  it  did  this  year,  and  kill  the  stalk. 

The  firstpicking  is  called  "  trashing ;"  that  is,  the  hands  go 
over  the  field  and  pick  the  cotton  from  the  few  open  bolls, 
realizing  twenty  pounds  and  upwards  a  day,  whereas,  if 
there  were  plenty  of  cotton  open,  they  would  gather  two 
hundred  pounds.  This  first  picking — the  hands  having  to 
search  for  the  open  cotton,  thus  disturbing  the  stalks — 
causes  the  ripe  bolls  to  open  rapidly,  so  that  a  field  which 
has  been  ''trashed"  over  will  in  a  few  days  be  again  ready 
for  the  pickers,  with  j^lenty  of  cotton  for  full  work. 

This  is  true  with  reference  to  a  healthy  growth  of  cot- 
ton. We  had  only  a  few  acres  of  such.  This  I  looked 
upon  with  pride,  whenever  I  could  forget  for  a  moment 
that  the  rest  of  the  plantation  was  its  opposite,  and  I  found 
myself  trying  to  believe  that  we  had  a  good  many  acres 
of  fair  cotton  ;  but  alas  !  my  better  judgment  told  me  that 
when  I  saw  good  cotton  on  Hebron,  I  had  to  seek  for  it. 
In  one  view  it  was  greatly  to  the  advantage  of  my  feelings — 
though  it  held  me  in  suspense,  which  is  always  unpleasant — 
that  I  had  never  seen  an  old-time  crop  of  cotton;  so  I  could 
make  no  comparison  between  it  and  the  Hebron  crop,  and 
thus  arrive  at  an  intelligent  conclusion  as  to  our  prospects. 
Be  a  crop  good  or  otherwise,  however,  I  knew  that  the 
harvest  must  always  be  a  hopeful  period.  It  is  something 
to  see  the  product  coming  in,  even  if  you  know  the  yield 
may  be  small.     Such  was  my  sensation,  when  one  morn- 


THE    COMMENCEMENT   OP    COTTON-PICKING.  419 

ing  in  the  early  part  of  September,  I  started  out  our  force 
for  the  picking  season.  The  wagons  carried  out  the  big 
baskets  for  holding  the  cotton  as  it  was  emptied  from  the 
picking-sacks.  Behind  them,  with  their  picking-sacks 
ready  to  commence  work,  followed  our  force. 

"  I's  longed  for  dis  day,"  said  Milly  to  Martha,  as  they 
trudged  along,  side  by  side." 

"  Go  'long,  now  Milly.     Sis  Frances  kin  pick  all  roun' 
you,  an'  at  de  same  time  dance  a  hoe-down  on  de  turnin 
row  afo'  you  gits  in  wid  your  row." 

"  Bragg  's  a  good  dog  ;  hole-fast 's  anudder,"  grunted 
out  Uncle  Wash,  at  this  attack  on  his  Milly. 

"  Does  you  see  dose  fingers  da  ?"  flashed  out  Milly,  hold- 
ing up  her  hands.  "  De  second  pa'r  was  nebber  born  dat 
could  beat  'em  pickin'  cotton. 

"  Does  you  call  dis  pickin'  cotton  ?  I  calls  it  trashin'. 
Wait  till  de  cotton  gits  open,  an'  I  'm  wid  you  from  de  risin' 
till  de  settin'  ob  de  sun.  I's  bo'n  'twixt  de  cotton  rows, 
chile,  an  'pickin  's  my  fote,"  said  Eube  to  Milly,  as  be 
swung  along  with  his  Indian  gait. 

Just  then  we  were  passing  by  a  field  of  our  small  cotton. 
"  You  niggars  '11  git  mighty  lame   backs  afore  we  gits 
through  dis  crap,  pickin'  in  dis  small  cotton,  an'  bavin'  to 
stoop  over  so,"  remarked  Eichard. 
"  Dat's  so,"  a  number  of  them  replied. 
''  Et  'ill  be  huntin'  for  cotton  here,"  said  Wes,  the  little 
French  negro. 

I  felt  like  telling  him  that  was  all  he  knew  about  it,  if 
he  thought  there  was  not  much  cotton  in  that  field,  but 
then  I  reflected  that  it  was  likely  to  turn  out  as  he  said, 
and  I  had  best  keep  still.  So  little  fretted  me  now,  and 
Wes's  insinuation  had  done  it.  I  Avas  especially  sensitive 
on  this  point. 

"  Dat 's  all  you  knows  about  a  crap,  nigger,"  replied 
Wash,  indignantly;  "  der 's  heaps  o'  cotton  on  dis  j^lace, 
an'  you  '11  find  it  out  so  afore  do  i)ickin'  season  's  ober." 


420  A   YEAR   or   WRECK. 

Wash's  assurance  restored  my  temper,  although  the  com- 
placency I  felt  at  his  belief  was  rather  the  result  of  my 
heart's  wish  than  of  conviction. 

"Bless  you,  Uncle  Wash,"  I  exclaimed,  "you  are  al- 
ways giving  me  comfort." 

"  Nebber  mind,  Unk  Wash,"  replied  Wes,  "  time  '11  tell 
who  's  right." 

"Yes,  time  will  tell,  an'  what'  s  mo,'  it  '11  be  Uncle  Wash, 
sho' ;  1  knows  a  crap  when  I  sees  it,  I  does." 

We  had  now  reached  the  field  we  were  to  begin  on. 

"  Scatter  de  baskets  'long  de  turnin'  row,"  called  out 
CJncle  Wash  to  the  drivers. 

"  To  be  sho',"  they  replied,  proceeding  to  do  it. 

"  Turn  in  dar,  two  on  a  row,"  said  Uncle  Wash  to  the 
pickers. 

Milly  sprang  to  the  task,  and  the  first  lock  was  picked 
by  her. 

Martha  saw  it,  and  was  chagrined  that  her  favorite 
picker,  Frances,  had  not  taken  the  honor,  but  made  the 
best  of  it,  exclaiming  : 

"  La,  Sis  Milly,  dat  do  'nt  significate  ;  do  n't  de  Bible 
say  de  fust  shall  be  last?" 

"  Dat  do  n't  'fer  to  cotton-pickin',  an'  you  knows  it,  Sis 
Martha,"  retorted  Milly,  wonderfully  in  earnest  in  her  de- 
termination to  get  the  most  cotton  for  the  evening's 
weighing. 

Old  Clara  was  on  hand  with  her  picking-sack. 

She  called  out:  "Sis  Martha,  you're  a  sinner,  an'  sin- 
ners has  no  right  to  be  quotin'  from  de  Bible.  Sis  Milly 
'longs  to  the  Lord's  'n'inted ;  she  's  'ligious,  an'  knows  what 
de  Bible  means." 

Martha  retorted  :  "  I  ain't  studyiu'  'bout  'ligion — time 
'nuff  fo'  dat;  I  wants  my  fun  fust — dey  ain't  any  fun  in 
'ligion.     I  believes  in  de  fiddle  an'  dancin',  I  does." 

There  was  a  general  groan  among  the  church  people,  par- 
ticularly Clara,  at  this  sacrilegious  talk  of  Martha. 


THE    COMMENCEMENT   OF   COTTON-PICKING.  421 

"  You'se  dc  debil's  own  chile,  plum  pintedly  !  "  Clara  ex- 
claimed, at  which  there  were  several  responses  :  "  Yes, 
Massa;"  ''Yes,  Jesus;"  "Do  you  hea'  me?"  and  then 
Uncle  Wash  yelled  out :  "  Less  'ligion  and  more  cotton- 
pickin'  in  dat  field  ;  do  you  hea'  me!''  But  the  conversa- 
tion had  struck  a  religious  vein,  and  was  not  to  be  easily 
quieted.  After  a  moment  of  silence,  it  broke  out  again  in 
the  shape  of  a  hymn,  which  Clara  started  up,  or  rather  the 
line  of  one: 

"  Yes,  Jesus,  hea'  me," 

which  was  taken  up  by  the  "  brothers  "  and  '<  sisters,"  and 
repeated  time  and  again,  until  one  of  the  "  sinner  negroes," 
with  a  very  rich  voice,  opened  out  with  : 

"  Way  down  upon  de  Swanee  ribber." 

This  was  understood  to  be  a  signal  for  his  class,  and 
most  of  them  joined  in,  soon  effectually  quieting  the  relig- 
ious singers. 

"  Water  me !"  some  one  cried. 

"  Hea'  dat  nigger  !  "  exclaimed  Wash,  in  disgust.  '-Dis 
ain't  de  hoein'  season,  an'  dar  ain't  no  heat  in  de  a'r,  fo' 
you  to  be  cry'in'  water.  You  jes'  wait  till  you  git  back  to  de 
turnin'-row,  whar  de  wagon  is,  fo'  water.  No  mo'  water- 
toters  in  dis  field  dis  year  ;— water-toters,  chiluns,  old  folks 
an'  nursin'  'omen,  all  got  to  turn  in  an'  pick,  ef  dis  crap  is 
to  be  saved.  You  niggers  dar,  what's  been  talkin'  all  de 
year  'bout  bein'  big  cotton-pickers,  better  stop  your  talkin' 
an'  go  to  pickin',  caze  it's  de  scales  at  de  wagon  dat  '11  tell 
who  's  de  big  pickers.  Stir  up  dar,  Milly — don't  you  see 
how  Sis  Frances  is  jes'  reachin'  out  fo'  cotton?"  added 
Uncle  Wash. 

Milly  looked  up  with  an  injured  air,  as  much  as  to  say, 
"  Uncle  Wash,  you  need  not  ever  push  me  to  work,"  which 
was  quite  true,  and  none  knew  it  better  than  he  ;  but  the 
fact  was.  Wash  was  ambitious  that  his  Milly  should  be  the 


422  A    YEAR   or   WRECK. 

prize-picker — and  be  saw  by  Frances'  mood  that  it  would 
crowd  her  to  become  so. 

"  I  declarV'  said  Clara,  "  It  'pears  like  I'd  hab  to  laarn 
to  pick  cotton  agin.  We  black  folks  hab  n't  had  any  ob  it 
to  do  sence  'fore  de  'bellion  sot  in,  an'  it  goes  mighty  awk'ard 
now — my  fingers  ain't  nothin'  like  as  suple  as  dey  used  to 
be." 

"  'Fore  de  wa'  was  five  years  ago,  Clarry — fingers  git 
pow'ful  stifi"  restin'  all  dat  time,"  said  Eeub. 

"  Dat  'pends  on  what  you  calls  restin',"  said  Clara ;  "  dese 
bans  hab  done  some  work  in  dat  time." 

"  What  I  means  by  work  is  cotton-pickin',"  replied 
Eeub. 

"Dat's  what  darkies'  fingers  was  made  fo',  and  less'n  dey 
bab  it  to  do  ebery  year,  dey's  restin' — jes'  what  we's  all  been 
doin'." 

"Alex  and  John,"  said  an  old  negro  to  his  sons,  one 
about  ten  and  the  other  about  sixteen,  who  were  picking 
near  him,  "  when  I  war  your  age,  de  obserseer  used  to 
whip  me  on  de  turnin'-row  at  nigbt  ef  I  didn't  hab  two 
hundred  pounds  ob  clean  cotton  in  my  baskets.  Dey  ain't 
any  oberseer  now,  since  we's  got  our  freedom,  to  whip  us  ; 
but  I's  gwine  to  see  dat  you  larn  to  pick  jes'  as  I  was  larnt, 
an'  ef  de  cotton  ain't  in  your  basket  when  weighin'  time 
comes,  your  dad's  gwine  to  know  de  reason  why." 

"Yes,  dad,  we'll  do  de  bes'  we  kin,"  drawled  one  of  the 
boys  in  reply. 

"  De  bes'  you  kin  is  as  well  as  de  nex'  one,"  answered 
the  father.  ''  Ef  you  git  dat,  you's  all  right — ef  not,  look 
outfo'  your  hides." 

This  admonition  bad  the  immediate  effect  on  Alex  and 
John  to  hurry  them  up.  And  then,  doubtless  instigated  by 
the  threat  of  the  old  man  to  punish  his  sons,  some  one 
started  the  song  commencing  : 

'*  Oh !  niggers,  does  you  know  you's  free  now  ?"  etc. 


THE   COMMENCEMENT   OF   COTTON-PICKING.  423 

Alex  was  old  enough  to  have  a  sweetheart  among  the 
negro  girls,  who  mischievously  called  out,  looking  over  to 
him  Avitli  her  great  black  eyes  : 

"Alex's  dad's  gwinc  to  switch  him  ef  he  don't  hab's 
much  cotton  in  his  basket  to-night  as  do  res' ; — better  hurry 
up  dar,  Alex,  ef  you  do  n't  want  to  get  switched," — this 
with  a  chuckling  laugh,  showing  a  dazzlingly  white  set  of 
teeth. 

Alex  answered  good-naturedly : 

"  I'll  be  dar  to  see  you,  Minty,  when  do  weighin'  time 
comes." 

I  could  see  at  a  glance  this  morning  that  the  work  of 
cotton-picking  was  one  which  absolutely  prevented  shirk- 
ing. The  cotton  in  the  basket,  when  weighed,  as  it  was  to 
be  nightly,  would  tell  the  story.  This  knowledge  was  re- 
freshing. If  we  only  had  what  we  expected  when  we  em- 
barked in  our  enterprise,  a  fair  crop,  how  happy  I  should 
now  have  felt.  How  rapidly  the  picking  season,  running 
into  January  as  it  does,  and  frequently  later  when  a  good 
crop  is  made,  would  have  glided  away. 

The  glorious  days  of  autumn  were  at  hand,  when,  except 
at  midday,  the  heat  was  not  at  all  uncomfortable ;  when 
the  forests  were  clothing  themselves  in  russet  and  gold; 
when  insect  life,  hitherto  so  troublesome,  had  mostly  dis- 
appeared ;  when  the  nights  were  delightfully  cool,  inviting 
to  uninterrupted  slee^D — and  if  I  could  have  felt  that  for 
months  to  come  cotton  was  to  flow  from  our  fields  in  a 
steady  stream,  I  repeat,  how  happy  should  I  have  been  ! 
Still,  as  it  was,  I  must  confess  that  upon  this  particular  day 
I  was  not  the  most  unhappy  man  in  the  world. 

There  was  in  me  one  per  cent,  of  belief  and  ninety-nine 
per  cent,  of  hope,  that  after  all  we  had  a  considerable  crop 
to  gather.  Then  the  happy  feeling  of  the  harvest  time 
was  upon  me.  There,  out  in  the  field,  were  our  busy 
pickers,  and  soon,  their  sacks  becoming  heavy  with  the 
weight  of  cotton  in  them,  one  after  another  commenced 


424  A    TEAR   OF   WRECK. 

coming  out  to  the  turning-row,  where  the  baskets  were, 
with  their  gaping,  hungry  mouths  ready  to  receive  the  first 
tribute  of  the  harvester.  Milly  had  picked  the  first  lock, 
but  Frances  was  the  first  to  discharge  her  load,  Milly  com- 
ing half  a  minute  later.  Their  baskets  were  near  together, 
and,  after  the  contents  of  their  sacks  were  emj^tied  into 
them,  there  was  a  subject  for  a  painter  in  the  scene — each 
eyeing  the  other's  basket  with  the  same  thought  expressed 
in  their  countenances  :  "  I  wonder  which  basket  will  win  !  " 

Uncle  Wash  was  there  too,  and  not  a  little  anxiously  he 
put  his  hand  first  into  one  basket  and  then  into  the  other, 
bearing  down  each  time  as  if  seeking  to  determine  which 
contained  the  most.  Eeub  came  up  just  then,  and  taking 
in  the  scene,  said  :    - 

"  Go  way  dere.  Uncle  Wash.  I  '11  tromp  de  baskets,  an' 
kin  tell  you  which  has  de  mos'  in  it,  to  a  lock." 

Whereupon,  with  his  left  foot  in  the  center,  and  his  right 
as  a  tramper,  Eeub  proceeded  to  circle  around  on  top  of  the 
cotton  in  each  basket,  looking  very  wise  meanwhile. 

Seeing  there  was  likely  to  be  a  controversy,  which  would 
take  time  from  picking,  I  said : 

"  The  scales  will  tell  the  story  to-night.  Eeub's  opinion 
will  not  settle  any  thing.     Go  back  to  work." 

They  all  answered  in  a  chorus,  "  Dat  's  so,"  and  returned 
to  picking. 

As  I  walked  along  and  looked  into  the  baskets  filling 
up  with  the  staple,  as  white  as  the  untrodden  snow,  I  was 
deeply  impressed  with  its  great  beauty.  And  then  I  thought 
of  the  miner,  who,  after  months  of  hard  and  unrequited 
toil,  finally  seizes  the  first  nugget  of  gold,  and  felt  that  I 
could  appreciate  his  feelings  through  my  own  at  the  pres- 
ent moment. 

There  was  our  treasure,  after  seven  months  of  toil  and 
rough  experience,  at  last  in  sight !  And  then  at  the 
thought,  I  thrust  my  hands  into  the  cotton,  lifting  up  the 


THE   COMMENCEMENT   OF   COTTON-PICKING.  425 

white  locks,  which  looked  like  giant  snow-flakes,  and  let- 
ting them  fall  back  into  their  fleecy  beds. 

Not  only  did  I  do  this, — I  found  myself  pressing  a 
handful  to  my  breast ;  but  I  recollected  myself — the  excite- 
ment over  the  first  sight  of  the  fruit  of  our  long  toil  was 
carrying  me  too  far. 

I  did  foolish  and  childish  things  like  this,  however,  all 
day  long,  constantly  delighting  to  handle  the  fresh  staple. 
It  was  like  the  father's  sensation  over  his  first-born  babe, 
when  his  eye  for  the  first  time  rests  upon  it. 

\Yhen  the  negroes  would  get  into  the  basket  with  their 
big  feet  and  dirty  shoes  to  trample  down  the  lovel}^  white, 
fleecy  stuff",  1  felt  like  crying  out :  "  Get  out  of  there,  you  're 
hurting  it ;  you 're  soiling  it;  it  is  cruel  to  crush  it  so!" 
And  when  at  last  night  came  and  the  scales  told  of  Milly's 
discomforture  and  Frances'  triumph,  and  when  John  and 
Alex  were  informed  by  their  father  that  he  would  let  them 
off  this  time,  but  to-morrow  night,  if  they  did  not  have 
the  cotton,  he  would  know  the  reason  why;  and  when  I 
saw  the  day's  work  emptied  from  the  baskets  into  the 
wagons — so  many  white  billows  to  be  beaten  under  the  feet 
of  the  trampers,  as  the  wind  whips  down  the  white-crested 
waves  into  solid  sheets  of  foam : — I  was  at  once  angry  at  the 
rough  treatment  my  idol  was  receiving  and  enthused  by  it^ 
beauty. 

And  when  at  last,  our  wagons  full  to  overflowing,  I 
started  off  behind  them  for  the  gin-house,  I  seemed  to  be 
following  snow-banks  on  wheels;  and  so  busy  was  my  im- 
agination, and  so  excited  my  brain,  1  fancied  there  came 
back  to  me  from  them  a  breath  of  chill,  which  fancy  was 
not  dispelled  until  at  a  turn  in  the  road  I  buried  my  hand 
in  one  of  the  great  white  piles  to  find  the  warmth  of  wool. 

The  crowd  of  tired  negroes  followed  along  behind,  their 
sacks  over  their  shoulders,  discussing  the  events  of  the  day. 


426  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

Martha  was  jubilant  over  her  "  favorite's  "  (as  she  called 
her)  "  success." 

"  Sis  Milly,  what  'd  1  tell  you  'bout  Sis  Frances?" 

"  Dat  's  all  right,  Sis  Martha  ;  dey  's  mo'  days  'n  one,  I 
rec'ons.  I  '11  be  in  de  fiel'  to-morrow,  God  willin',  to  see 
Sis  Frances,"  replied  Milly,  with  an  air  which  said  plainly, 
"  I  can  beat  her,  certain." 

"  Sis  Frances  '11  be  dere  sho,"  answered  Martha. 

''  Yes,  you  can  'pend  on  dat,"  said  Frances,  not  a  little 
proudly  over  her  day's  success. 

"  Grolly,  you  niggars  ort  to  know  'nuff 'bout  cotton-pickin' 
to  know  dat  one  day  don't  'cide  nuffin',"  said  Eeub. 

"  Ef  it  did,  you  'd  be  no  whar,"  sputtered  out  Wes,  the 
French  negro.  Eeub"s  first  day's  record  as  a  cotton-picker 
was  one  of  the  lowest. 

'  Go  'long,  Wes  ;  I  was  jes'  gittin'  my  hand  in  to-day — 
come  an'  see  me  arter  I  git  started." 

"  Dar  must  ha'  been  some  mo'  gittin'  their  hands  ii^to- 
day,"  said  Eichard,  sarcastically,  ''  by  de  weights." 

"  Dat 's  so,"  answered  Uncle  Wash.  "  Ef  some  "of  you 
niggars  is  done  your  best  to-day,  dar's  been  mighty  tall 
braggin'  on  dis  plantation  dis  year." 

"  Wait  'til  we  git  our  fingers  an'  our  backs  suple,"  said 
one  of  the  hitherto  biggest  boasters,  but  whose  day's  record 
was  even  below  Eeub's. 

"Yes,  dat's  so,"  responded  several  of  the  equally  guilty 
ones. 

"  Did  you  'sarve  Mr.  Harding,  to-day,"  I  heard  one 
negro  ask  another  in  a  low  tone.  "  He  's  bin  nigh  'side  his- 
self  at  de  fust  sight  o'  de  cotton.  'Pears  like  he  's  fear'd 
we  'd  hurt  it  han'lin'  it." 

"  Yes,  he  tole  me  to  clean  off  my  boots  'fore  I  got  into 
de  wagon  to  tramj)  de  cotton,"  was  the  reply. 

"  I  tole  him  de  cotton  would  clean  'em.  He  said  dat 
was  jes'  what  he  did  n't  want ;  he  din  n't  want  to  have  it 
s'iled  ;  dat  he  didn't  want  a  pin's  p'int  of  dirt  on  it ;  dat 


THE   COMMENCEMENT   OP   COTTON-PICKING.  427 

cotton  's  like  our  white  pocket-handkercher  of  a  Sunday: 
how  would  we  like  to  wipe  our  muddy  boots  on  hit?" 

There  was  a  little  subdued  mirth  over  this'  idea,  when 
some  one  said  : 

''  De  bos  '11  git  ober  dat  'fore  we  's  been  pickin'  many 
days ;  cotton  aint  s'  easy  s'iled  as  all  dat  comes  to." 

"  Cotton  s'iled,"  was  the  answer,  spoken  disdainfully. 
"  Et  '11  take  rain  an'  mud  'tcl  you  'd  think  it  was  ruinated, 
and  den  come  out  o'  de  gin  stan'  as  white  as  Liss'  teeth 
thar. ' 

"  Go  way  dar,  niggar  ;  you  better  not  be  cas'in'  sheep's- 
eyes  at  my  teef ;  my  teef  'longs  to  me." 

"  Who  's  cas'in'  sheep's-eyes  at  your  teef,  gal  ?  You  's 
got  so  much  mouf,  if  you  's  any  whar  roun'  de  fust  t'ing  to 
see  is  your  teef." 

The  laugh  was  on  Liss,  and  being  boisterously  indulged 
in,  threw  her  into  a  pout.  And  then  the  music  in  the  ne- 
gro cropped  out,  as  there  fell  upon  the  night  air : 

"  Can 't  stay  in  de  wilderness,"  etc. 

The  song  proceeding,  one  after  another  joined  in,  until 
the  air  fairly  rang  with  the  music  of  their  rich  voices. 

"  Why  do  n't  you  jine  in  de  singin',  Liss?"  asked  good 
old  Clara,  evidently  wishing  to  mollify  her. 

"I  aint  stud'in'  'bout  singin," growled  Liss. 


428  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 


CHAPTER  LXXl. 

RETURN    OF    MRS.    HARDING   AND   THE   CHILDREN. 

A  FEW  days  before  our  cabin  was  completed,  while  I  was 
hewing  down  a  wooden  wedge,  which  I  held  in  my  left 
hand,  the  hatchet  made  a  mistake,  and  cut  out  quite  a 
large  piece  of  the  ball  of  the  hand,  below  the  thumb.  This 
would  put  a  stop  to  my  further  carpentering,  but  there  was 
little  more  to  do  to  make  our  home  complete. 

I  had,  before  coming  South,  taken  out  a  policy  in  an  ac- 
cident insurance  company-,  my  weekly  dues  from  which,  in 
case  of  an  injury,  were  fifty  dollars,  so  that  the  wound,  in 
view  of  our  short  crop,  was  not  an  unmixed  evil.  My  dis- 
ability would  probably  last  a  couple  of  weeks,  and  though 
one  hundred  dollars  was  but  little  in  the  light  of  the  Dobson 
statement,  it  was  yet  a  considerable  sum  in  the  light  of  its 
results. 

It  was  now  the  5th  of  November ;  our  first  frost  had 
come  the  15th  of  October,  and  there  had  been  several 
since,  so  that  the  atmosphere  was  now  thoroughly  whole- 
some. I  had,  some  time  before,  written  to  Mrs.  Harding 
that  I  would  be  ready  to  receive  her  any  time  after  the  10th 
of  November. 

In  my  enervated  condition  there  was  a  good  deal  of  the 
child  about  me.  I  found  myself  looking  longingly  up  the 
river  before  the  time  for  her  arrival  had  come,  and  grew 
more  petulant  each  day.  Then  my  accident  rendered  me 
useless  for  any  thing  but  riding  around  a  little  among  the 
cotton -2:)ickers  with  my  hand  in  a  sling.  My  blood  was 
thin,  and  in  consequence  the  wound  healed  slowly.  It  was 
also  quite  painful,  breaking  into  my  sleep  at  night.  The 
days  seemed  weeks,  and  the  nights  interminable. 


RETURN   OF   MRS.    HARDING   AND   THE   CHILDREN.       429 

The  lOtli  of  November,  however,  at  last  arrived.  The 
sun  went  down,  and  the  stars  appeared,  but  no  Mrs.  Hard- 
ing, and  then  I  did  indeed  feel  anxious.  But  1  was  to 
have  four  more  days  of  this  anxiety,  only  constantly  in- 
creasing, before  my  great  suspense  was  removed. 

For  a  week  previous  I  had  been  occupying  what,  com- 
pared with  our  lodging  in  the  overseer's  cabin,  I  regarded 
as  spacious  apartments,  in  our  new  house.  True,  the  gum 
flooring  rattled  under  my  feet,  and  showed  a  decided  in- 
clination to  warp  up  toward  the  roof,  and  patches  of  day- 
light streamed  through  the  holes  in  the  chinking;  but, 
then,  it  was  a  home  for  us.  The  cracks  in  the  floor  and 
chinking  meant  ventilation,  and,  as  a  consequence,  health. 
If  any  of  our  old  friends  had  happened  along  then,  and 
showed  any  disposition  to  make  fun  of  our  building,  there 
would  have  been  a  difficulty.  Other  people  might  not  like 
chimneys  of  sticks  and  mud,  but  I  did  ;  this  was  home  pro- 
duction, and  partook  of  the  rudely  picturesque — was  high 
art  in  fact.  Once  during  the  long  stretch  of  watching  for  my 
family,  I  came  over  to  the  house  from  the  landing.  The 
moon  was  at  its  full,  and  our  cabin  stood  out  under  it,  in 
bold  relief  It  had  never  looked  so  beautiful  to  me  before, 
and  I  then  and  there  concluded,  that,  placed  in  a  city  beside 
the  finest  residences,  it  would  excite  more  admiration  from 
people  of  genuine  artistic  taste  than  the  best  of  them.  But 
if  I  felt  proud  of  it  that  night,  how  much  more  did  I  feel 
so  when  showing  Mrs.  Harding  and  the  children  through 
it  upon  their  arrival !  There  was  our  own  room,  and  there, 
just  adjoining  it,  was  the  children's  ;  on  the  other  side  of 
the  area  was  the  guests'  room,  and  just  adjoining  that  the 
kitchen.  I  fancied  Mrs.  Harding  looked  a  little  dubious  at 
this  last  arrangement.  She  had  been  ecstatic  over  the 
location  of  the  children's  room  and  our  own,  but  now  she 
only  answered,  very  faintly,  when  I  explained  the  purpose 
of  the  others,  "Yes."  Then  it  occurred  to  me  that  per- 
haps it  was  not  quite  the  thing  to  have  the  guests'  room  so 


430  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

near  the  kitchen  ;  besides,  come  to  think  of  it,  what  was 
the  use  of  a  guests'  room  any  how  ?  Should  we  ever  have 
a  guest  down  here  ?  While  this  query  was  revolving  itself 
in  my  mind,  Mrs.  Harding  asked,  a  little  faintly  : 

"  What  about  a  dining-room  ?" 

"  Why  not  use  this  ?" 

"  That  is  what  I  thought ;"  and  so  it  was  settled,  only 
she  added,  "  w^e  can  consider  this  our  '  multum  in  parvo  ' 
room — pai'lor,  guests'  room,  dining-room,  etc." 

Several  busy  days  followed,  with  the  opening  of  trunks 
and  scattering  of  the  bric-a-brac  contents  through  the  sev- 
eral rooms.  There  was  also  an  abundance  of  home-made 
canned  goods,  with  a  coop  of  chickens,  bought  in  the  home 
market,  and  brought  all  the  way  down.  The  latter  were 
beauties,  and  Mrs.  Harding  said,  looking  at  them,  not  a 
little  proudly  : 

"  We  will  have  our  own  eggs  this  winter." 

There  was  a  wild  look  in  my  eye  after  she  had  said  this. 

'•'  What  is  the  matter,  John  ?  Do  n't  you  approve  of 
it?" 

The  look  came  from  my  having  noticed  that  the  chick- 
ens seemed  generally  to  have  long  combs,  and  the  doubt 
struck  me — what  if  they  are  all  roosters  ?  A  little  further 
inspection  proved  them  to  be  so,  and  then  I  let  her  know 
it,  mischievously. 

To  say  that  Mrs.  Harding  was  crest-fallen  over  this  dis- 
covery but  feebly  expresses  the  situation. 

"  Never  mind,  dear,  this  is  our  unfortunate  year  ; — we 
can  't  even  buy  a  coop  of  chickens  without  being  fooled." 


I   AM    APPOINTED   A   JUDGE.  431 


CHAPTEE  LXXII. 


I   AM    APPOINTED   A   JUDGE. 


During  the  summer  a  vacancy,  by  death,  had  oc- 
curred in  the  judgship  of  the  county.  Owing  to  the  fiict 
that  the  native  lawyers  had  all  been  in  the  Confederate 
army,  it  was  found  impossible  to  appoint  any  one  among 
them  who  could  take  the  necessary  oath  of  office.  So  the 
vacancy  had  continued  to  exist  until  there  was  quite  a 
clamor  for  a  term  of  court.  The  agent  of  the  Freedman's 
Bureau  for  the  county,  it  seems,  stated  the  case  to  the  com- 
manding General  of  the  District,  who,  in  turn,  called  the 
Governor's  attention  to  the  matter.  A  correspondence  en- 
sued beteween  these  officials  on  the  subject. 

As  a  remedy,  the  General  suggested  my  name,  which 
was  accepted,  and  a  commission  was  sent  me  through  the 
Bureau  agent,  who  explained  to  me  the  facts  as  above. 

My  first  impulse  Avas  to  decline  the  honor  so  unex- 
pectedly conferred.  But  General  Dobson  advised  differently, 
and  finally  I  was  persuaded  to  accept,  but  with  the  under- 
standing that  it  was  only  until  a  successor  could  be  found 
among  the  old  citizens.  The  idea  of  occupying  the  position 
was,  under  the  circumstances,  repulsive  to  me,  and  I  recon- 
ciled myself  to  it  only  upon  the  purely  patriotic  ground 
that,  with  the  necessity  that  it  should  be  filled,  there  was 
no  one  else  available  for  the  place,  and  a  citizen  of  the 
county  as  I  was,  I  felt  it  to  be  my  duty,  thus  called  upon, 
to  respond.  It  was  but  a  temporary  duty — certainly  some 
one  would  shortly  be  found  who  would  take  the  judicial 
burden  off  my  shoulders.  Many  Confederates  were  being 
pardoned  at  Washington  just  then,  and  it  was  not  unlikely 


432  A   YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

that  some  of  those  in  our  county  might  have  the  fortune 
to  receive  this  executive  favor.  Thus  unexpectedly  was  a 
handle  added  to  my  name,  and  hence  I  should  be  no  longer 
plain  Mr.  Harding. 

The  above  are  the  facts  in  the  case,  and  my  friends  in 
the  J^orth  who  have  blamed  me  for  accepting  a  judgeship 
so  soon  after  my  location  in  the  South,  and  have,  there- 
fore, given  me  my  judicial  title  grudgingly  or  not  at  all, 
will,  I  hope,  now  that  they  know  the  circumstances,  think 
differently,  regarding  me  rather  as  one  who  unwillingly 
undertook  a  disagreeable  duty.  If  there  are  skeptics,  I 
beg  of  them  to  read  through  this  chapter  in  my  experience, 
when  I  feel  certain  they  will  concede  that  my  task  was 
far  from  being  either  pleasant  or  free  from  personal  dan- 
ger. 

Ilaving  accepted  the  trust,  my  purpose  was  to  fulfill  it, 
which  I  at  once  made  preparations  to  do.  General  Dobson, 
reinvigorated  by  his  sojourn  in  the  North,  willingly  as- 
sumed the  general  plantation  duties.  Several  days  were, 
however,  occupied  in  getting  out  of  the  harness  myself,  and 
familiarizing  my  successor  with  the  same. 

It  was  while  I  was  thus  making  preparation  that  there 
came  to  my  knowledge  the  unpleasant  fact  of  bitter  feeling 
among  some  of  the  old  citizens  of  the  county  at  my  ap- 
pointment. 1  had  notified  the  sheriff  to  have  the  court- 
room ready  for  me  on  the  following  Monday,  a  week 
later  than  the  date  of  my  notice,  and  the  information  was 
circulated  rapidly  through  the  county.  Visiting  the  post- 
oflSce  a  day  or  two  later,  I  found  two  anonymous  letters,  one 
begging  me  not  to  go  out  to  the  county-seat  and  hold  court 
if  1  cared  for  my  life,  signed,  "An  Unknown  Friend;" 
another  saying  :  "  Make  your  peace  with  your  devil,  you 
have  no  god,  before  you  set  up  to  be  our  judge  ;  kaze  you  '11 
never  live  through  it."  I  stopped  at  the  village  store  to 
make  a  small  purchase,  and  the  kind-hearted  owner  man- 
aged to  drop  into  my  ear,  "Don  't  undertake  to  hold  court 


I  AM  APPOINTED  A  JUDGE.  433 

now  ;  I  can't  say  more,  but,  believe  rac,  I  have  reason  to  say 
this  much."  As  1  passed  through  the  streets  of  the  vil- 
lage it  was  manifest  that  I  was  an  object  of  curiosity. 
"  Southland  "  scowled  at  me,  and  a  triumphant  look  flashed 
from  his  blood-shot  eye,  which  I  did  not  then  understand, 
but  which  portended  mischief  to  some  one.  Greatly  to  my 
surprise,  further  along  at  a  turn  in  the  levee,  I  was  stopped 
by  a  prominent  citizen,  who  said  to  me  : 

"  I  understand  you  are  going  out  to  the  county-seat  to 
hold  court  next  Monday.  I  am  o^^posed  to  you,  but  I 
don  't  want  to  see  you  killed,  as  I  think  you  would  be  if 
you  undertook  it.  You  had  best  stay  home  and  let  the 
court  go." 

I  thanked  him  for  his  words  of  caution,  and  heartily, 
too,  because  it  was  plain  to  be  seen  that  he  was  in  earnest 
and  felt  for  me,  but  I  added  :  "  I  have  accepted  this  office 
— reluctantly,  it  is  true,  but  as  long  as  I  hold  it  I  am  going 
to  perform  its  duties,  even  if  I  am  murdered  in  so  doing." 

"  Well,  Mr.  Harding,  that  is  courageous  in  you,  but 
where  is  the  use  of  your  risking  your  life  ?  At  any  rate, 
do  n't  open  court  just  now  ;  may  be  after  awhile  you  can 
do  so  safely." 

"  The  law  compels  the  judge  to  hold  court  monthly. 
The  jail  is  full  of  prisoners  waiting  trial,  and  I  must  go  out. 
Again  I  thank  you  for  your  warning,"  and,  seizing  him 
by  the  hand,  I  pressed  it,  saying :  "  It  is  something  to 
know,  as  I  have  learned  to-day,  that  there  is  a  friendly 
voice  to  caution  me  when  danger  threatens,"  and,  still  suf- 
fering from  my  enervated  condition,  I  felt  a  tear  drop  upon 
my  cheek,  at  the  discovery  I  had  made — first,  by  the 
warning  letter;  second,  by  the  verbal  warning  of  the  vil- 
lage merchant,  and  now  by  this  one — that  I  was  not  en- 
tirely without  friends. 

The  next  day  General  Dobson  visited  the  village  and 
returned  full  of  the  impression  that  it  would  be  danger- 
ous for  me  to  hold  court  now,  and  that  I  should  have  to 
19 


434  A    YEAR    OF    WRECK. 

proceed  with  great  caution.  There  had  been  personal 
warnings  dropped  into  his  ear.  As  he  told  me  what  he 
had  heard,  his  face  was  gravely  apprehensive.  Neverthe- 
less, my  resolution  remained  unchanged. 

Still  later  in  the  week,  the  New  Orleans  papers  brought 
an  account  of  the  cold-blooded  assassination  of  a  new- 
comer like  myself  who  had  been  appointed  in  a  Louisiana 
parish  to  the  precise  position  I  had  accepted  !  As  I  looked 
at  the  head-lines,  the  thoughts  flashed  through  my  mind — 
"  only  change  the  name  and  read  your  own  fate.  It  is  not  too 
late  to  recall  the  appointment.  But  no — my  hand  is  at  the 
plow  ;  to  remove  it  is  cowardice  ;  1  will  die  first.  I  accept 
this  obituary  notice,  if  needs  be,  as  my  own." 

It  was  a  double  tragedy,  as  the  sheriff,  also  a  new-comer, 
and  the  judge  were  at  the  same  time  murdered,  and  that 
too,  on  their  way  to  court!  The  account  said  there  was 
no  clue  to  the  perpetrators.  Nor  did  it  express  any  in- 
dignation or  regret  over  the  bloody  affair. 

The  reader  may  be  certain  that  this  terrible  news  was 
kept  from  my  famil}',  and  I  endeavored  to  betray  no  sign 
of  excitement  in  consequence. 

There  were  many  things  I  did  at  this  time  which 
were  unusual.  Dobson  had  a  pair  of  derringers,  also  of 
navy-sixes,  which  I  borrowed.  I  closed  u]o  some  unset- 
tled accounts  ;  made  several  memorandums  and  laid  them 
away  in  a  drawer,  where  any  careless  searcher  might  find 
them,  directing  certain  thing  to  be  done,  "if  any  thing 
should  happen  to  me  ;  "  that  mysterious  last  will  and  testa- 
ment came  out  from  its  hiding-place,  and  was  carefully  looked 
over.  In  view  of  our  crop  failure  it  was  a  ghastly  joke. 
I  added  a  codicil  to  the  effect  that,  if  I  died  while  a  resi- 
dent of  the  South,  it  was  my  wish  to  have  my  remains 
taken  to  the  North  for  interment.  Both  Dobson's  derring- 
ers and  navy-sixes  came  into  use  several  times,  ostensibly 
to  bring  down  a  bird,  but  really,  I  fear,  to  test  my  accuracy 
of  aim.      I  did  all  these  things,  and,  while  silently  pro- 


I    AM   APPOINTED   A   JUDGE.  435 

testing  in  my  mind  that  they  had  no  significance,  I  yet  felt 
they  had. 

Our  county  was  partly  hill  and  partly  bottom-land— the 
latter  bordering  the  Mississippi,  the  former  in  the  rear  of 
it,  and  beginning  some  ten  miles  back  from  the  river. 
In  the  bottom  region,  the  plantations  being  large,  and  the 
labor  exclusively  negro,  the  white  people  were  few.  The 
contrary  was  true  of  the  hill  region,  and  so,  some  time  be- 
fore the  war,  a  contest  had  taken  place  for  a  change  of  location 
of  the  county-seat,  which  was  then  on  the  river.  The  vote 
showed  the  hill  people  to  be  largely  in  the  majority.  The 
county-seat  was,  accordingly,  moved  back  twenty  miles  to 
the  hills,  where  it  remained  at  the  time  of  which  I  write. 

This  region  was  inhabited  by  that  class  of  people  called,  in 
derision,  "  the  poor  white  trash," — this  because  they  owned 
but  few  or  no  slaves,  and  such  work  as  was  done  they 
mostly  did  themselves.  There  was  but  little  in  harmony 
between  the  two  regions.  The  hill  people  generally  voted 
against  secession,  the  river  people  for  it.  When  the  war 
came  on  the  former,  either  voluntarily  or  through  conscrip- 
tion, largely  made  up  the  rank  and  file  of  the  Confederate 
army,  while  the  latter  either  became  its  ofiicers,  or  were 
exempted  from  service  under  a  later  Confederate  law, 
which  prevented  the  owner  of  a  certain  number  of  slaves 
from  conscription  into  the  army. 

From  my  almost  daily  intercourse  with  the  village  mer- 
chant, while  making  our  jDurchases,  I  got  the  impression 
that,  to  say  the  least,  he  did  not  dislike  me,  if,  indeed,  he 
did  not  entertain  a  kindly  feeling  toward  me  ;  and  so  one 
day,  anxious  to  learn  all  I  could  of  a  class  of  people  I  was 
about  to  encounter  for  the  first  time,  I  said : 

"  Tell  me  what  you  know  about  the  hill  peoj^le." 

"  Come  into  the  oflSce,"  he  answered,  in  an  undertone, — 
after  looking  around  among  the  bystanders  inquiringly,  as 
if  observing  who  were  there,  so  that  he  might  make  up  his 
mind  whether  or  not  it  would  be  safe  to  be  closeted  with 


436  A    TEAR   OF   WRECK. 

one  of  the  "  Yankee  new-comers."  Locking  the  door  ho 
began,  with  a  something  in  his  manner  which  caused  me  to 
feel  that,  for  once,  he  was  going  to  speak  his  mind,  let  the 
result  be  what  it  might. 

He  bit  into  his  cigar  savagely,  and  sent  out  great  puffs 
of  smoke  from  it;  then  he  kicked  out  viciously  at  one  of 
the  mangy  country  curs,  which  was  making  a  kennel  of 
his  counting-room,  sending  him  howling  into  a  corner  on 
three  legs,  and  then  he  said  : 

"  If  the  river  people  indulged  in  champagne  before  the 
war,  the  hill  people  were  not  less  devoted  to  whisky.  It 
was  drink  in  both  cases,  and  drunkenness,  too,  though  in 
the  one  case,  the  victim  may  have  fallen  more  often  into  a 
bed  of  luxury  ;  in  the  other,  more  often  into  the  first  fence- 
corner. 

"  If  a  personal  difficulty  arose,  the  code  duello  may  have 
been  invoked  to  settle  it  with  the  first  class,  but  the  other 
also  had  a  remedy — warning  and  shot  being  almost  simul- 
taneous with  the  offense. 

"  These  hill  people  are  woefully  isolated.     There  is  in 
their  lives  all  that  may  be  conceived  of  remote  frontier  ex- 
perience.    There  are  bears,  deer,  in  fact  all  sorts  of  wild 
and  savage  game,  in  their  woods.     Take  your  best  culti- 
vated city  man,"  continued  he,  "and  give  him  fifteen  years 
of  this  experience,  and  you  will  find  that  he  has  lost  most 
of  his  former  identity — not  only  that,  but  he  has  gained 
most  of  the  characteristics  of  his  wild  surroundings.    Give 
a  man  a  life  of  it  and  what  do  you  find  ?  " 
"Are  they  a  laborious  people  ?  "  I  asked. 
"  Yes  ;  they  work  some.     They  need  money  with  which 
to   purchase  ammunition  to  kill   game  and  end  personal 
quarrels,  to  buy  whisky,  tobacco,  some  coffee  and  sugar,  a 
little  clothing— jeans,  cottonades,  and  kerseys, — and  play 
poker  in  a  retail  way." 

"  What  do  you  mean  by  'poker  in  a  retail  way?  '"  I 
asked,  amused. 


I    AM    APrOINTED   A    JUDGE-  437 

''  I  mean  small  games — five  cents  ante  with  twenty-five 
cents  limit,  for  instance.  Neither  books,  magazines  or  news- 
papers are  in  demand  out  there,  unless  used  as  wadding  for 
their  guns — because  tow  is  scarce,  and  then  paper  covered 
with  printing  will  do,  though  there  is  something  about  their 
manner  which  says  they  would  prefer  the  j)aper  without 
the  printing  on  it,  as  printer's  ink  fouls  their  gun-barrels. 

"There  are  exceptions  among  these  people — just  about 
as  gold  is  exceptionable,"  he  added  with  a  smile;  "but 
where  there  is  little  difference  in  their  mode  of  existence, 
the  people  themselves  must  be  generally  alike.  It  is  not 
living  out  there,  as  life  is  understood  where  you  came  from, 
but  simply  existence. 

"Just  now  there  is  one  point  on  which  the  hill  and  river 
people  are  united — hatred  to  the  Yankees.  This  is  one  of 
the  results  of  the  war. 

"  The  beliefs  of  the  hill  people  are  sincere.  In  this  re- 
spect they  are  vastly  different  from  their  more  intelligent 
brothers,  the  river  people.  Convince  a  bill-man  that  a  cer- 
tain thing  is  right,  or  true,  though  it  may  be  entirely  dif- 
ferent from  what  he  had  hitherto  thought,  and  he  will 
adopt  it.  Thus,  with  terrible  prejudices,  they  may  be  said 
to  be  a  plastic  people.  The  man  that  one  moment  they 
would  put  a  bullet  through,  because  of  a  belief  that  he  was 
in  some  way  their  enemy — and  this  being  their  idea  of  the 
way  to  rid  themselves  of  enemies — once  undeceive  them, 
and  the  next  moment  they  will  take  him  to  their  hearths 
and  shower  upon  him  the  best  their  homes  afford. 

"In  the  nature  of  things,  with  the  same  opportunities  to 
do  so,  these  untamed  people  will  absorb  the  civilizing  in- 
fluences of  the  North  much  sooner  than  the  river  people, 
and  I  sincerely  believe  that  the  great  hope  for  the  near 
future  of  this  country  is  through  them. 

"  Some  one  has  said  of  the  upland  people  :  '  They  arc 
like  the  acid  in  photography  :  turn  it  loose  and  it  will  either 
injure  or  destroy  whatever  it  comes  in  contact  with.     Put 


438  A    YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

it  to  its  appropriate  use,  and  what  a  beautiful  picture  it  as- 
sists to  produce.'  I  suppose  the  parallel  is  that  these 
hill  i)eople,  without  j^roper  influences,  are  the  acid  turned 
loose,  but  under  proper  influences  they  would  make  the  best 
of  citizens. 

"  The  prejudices  engendered  by  slavery  will  only  en- 
tirely disappear  with  the  disapjDcarance  of  the  generation 
in  which  slavery  lived.  These  hill  peoj)le,  being  only  un- 
der'its  influence  to  a  smalt  degree,  rather  sufl'ering  from  its 
example  of  making  white  labor  ignoble,  will  soon  find  out 
that,  if  any  thing,  they  were  relieved  by  its  abolition,  hence 
the  small  grains  of  prejudice  that  now  exist  in  their  minds 
will  be  replaced  by  feelings  of  gladness  that  an  institution 
which  made  them  '  poor  white  trash  '  is  dead ;  and  there 
will  naturally  grow  up  a  kindly  feeling  toward  the  govern- 
ment and  people  who  accomplished  this  for  them.  In 
slavery  times  unquestionably  white  labor  was  a  disgrace 
here.  In  time  this  will  all  be  changed,  now  that  slavery  is 
abolished." 

The  village  merchant  had  entirely  opened  u]0  his  thoughts 
to  me.  He  had  never  before  seemed  to  have  any  opinions, 
but  the  fact  was  that,  like  so  many  of  his  class,  he  was 
wearing  a  mask  which,  lifted,  disclosed  a  man  of  decided 
ones.  I  thanked  him  sincerely  for  the  insight  he  had  given 
me,  and  told  him  that  I  had  never  dreamed  that  he  was  so 
close  an  observer.  I  was  strongly  inclined  to  ask  him  if  he 
thought  the  day  would  ever  come  when  his  class  would  as- 
sert themselves  in  the  South,  but  upon  second  thought  I 
felt  that  he  had  already  given  me  so  much  of  his  confidence 
that  it  would  not  be  kind  to  press  him  further  at  that  time. 
I  mounted  my  horse  and  rode  slowly  home,  thinking  :  "  Out 
into  this  hill  region  I  must  go  to  hold  court  with  all  my 
Yankee  odor  about  me.  What  is  to  be  my  fate  ?  Will 
these  hill  people  give  me  time  to  get  acquainted  with  them, 
and  so,  may  be,  teach  them  to  think  well  of  me?  or  will 
they  shoot  me  on  sight  ?  " 


I    AM   APPOINTED    A   JUDGE.  439 

The  sun  had  sunk  to  rest  when  I  wound  my  way  out  of 
the  village.  There  was  our  first  home,  and  in  the  twilight 
it  had  the  silence  of  death.  Why  did  I  gaze  at  it  so  long, 
unless  for  the  thought  which  came  into  my  mind,  "  Will  I 
ever  see  it  again  ?  "  The  full  moon  came  up,  a  little  fur- 
ther on,  its  fiice  strongly  shaded  with  red,  and  instead  of 
questioning,  as  was  my  wont,  what  sort  of  a  morrow  it  prom- 
ised, there  fell  from  my  lips  the  exclamation  :  "  There  is 
blood  upon  it." 

At  one  of  the  river  landings  I  passed,  there  was  some- 
thing white  glittening  in  the  moonlight.  Anxious  to  di- 
vert my  thoughts  from  their  gloomy  channels  before  reach- 
ing home,  I  rode  out  to  see  what  it  was,  and  found  a 
tomb-stone,  freshly  landed  from  a  down-river  boat !  At 
this  time  a  party  of  government  employes  were  in  the 
neighborhood,  engaged  in  disinterring  the  remains  of  Fed- 
eral soldiers  from  those  great  grave-yards,  the  Mississippi 
levees,  for  transfer  to  the  national  cemeteries,  then  being 
established  ;  and  there,  on  the  side  of  the  levee,  on  ray  route, 
was  a  great  pile  of  coffins,  either  filled  or  to  be  filled,  and 
there  were  the  gaping  pits  strewn  along  my  path.  There, 
also,  were  the  untouched  mounds,  showing  the  work  of 
disinterment  unfinished.  Then  I  came  upon  a  pack  of 
hungry  dogs  of  the  neighborhood,  feeding  upon  the  carcass 
of  a  mule,  passed  the  buzzard's-roost  in  the  dead  tree,  and 
so  reached  home,  sadly  wondering  why  it  was  that  uj^on 
this  particular  night  I  had  to  travel  through  such  scenes  as 
1  have  just  described. 


440  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 


CHAPTEE  LXXIII. 

HOME   FROM    THE   VILLAGE. 

If  reminders  of  death  attended  my  ride  home  from  the 
village,  they  vanquished  upon  my  arrival  there.  Two  pairs 
of  chubby  arms  encircled  my  Deck  as  I  stepped  upon  the 
gallery,  and  there  also  was  Mrs.  Harding,  claiming  her 
share  of  the  welcome.  Kisses  greeted  me  from  those  sweet 
lijDS  of  mother  and  children.  The  sky  cleared  at  once,  and 
for  the  time  being  I  forgot  about  the  blood  on  the  moon, 
or  any  thing  else  ominous,  in  the  bright  cheer  of  our  log- 
cabin. 

"  Why  are  you  so  late,  John  ?  1  have  worried,  fearing 
something  had  haj^pened  to  you,"  said  Mrs.  Harding,  ten- 
derly. 

"No  especial  reason,  my  dear." 

And  then  it  occurred  to  me  that  I  had  best  give  her  a 
little  suggestion  of  the  situation,  whereupon  I  corrected 
my  reply  : 

"  Oh,  yes,  there  was  ;  I  had  quite  a  long  interview  with 
the  village  merchant." 

This  statement  had  sobered  my  face,  and  Mrs.  Harding 
asked,  a  little  anxiously  :  "Any  bad  news?" 

"  Nothing  very  particular.  He  told  me  what  he  knew 
about  the  hill  people  I  have  got  to  visit  next  week  ;  and, 
by  the  way,"  approaching  more  nearly  the  plain  truth, 
"  there  is  right  smart  talk  of  danger  to  me,  if  1  go  out 
there  ;  but  I  'm  going,  nevertheless." 

"Why  do  you  go,  John? — why  not  resign  the  place? 
There  is  danger  enough  here,  without  encountering  it  out 
there." 


HOME   FROM    THE   VILLAGE.  441 

"Well,  darling,  it  is  a  duty  that  has  presented  itself  in 
my  i^athway.  I  have  lifted  it  upon  my  shoulders,  and  I 
could  never  look  my  family  in  the  face  if  I  put  it  down 
now.  You  had  better  have  my  dead  body,  if  it  comes 
to  you  through  the  discharge  of  duty,  than  the  cowardly 
wretch  I  should  be  if  I  shunned  it  because  it  was  fraught 
with  danger.  It  was  dangerous  to  be  a  soldier,  but  where 
would  our  government  be  now  but  for  ils  soldiers?  We 
are  fighting  now  in  a  different  way,  and  he  that  is  in  the 
contest,  and  shirks  his  duty,  is  a  coward.  But  enough  of 
this.  I  am  hungry  for  our  evening  rubber  of  cribbage, 
and,  besides,  I  do  n't  want  any  gloomy  thoughts  in  this 
paradise,  which  you  and  the  boys  have  made  for  me.  If  it 
is  all  dark  on  the  outside,  let  it  be  bright  in  here."  This 
last  utterance  filled  Mrs.  Harding's  face  with  joy,  and  she 
replied  : 

'^  It  shall  always  be  a  bright  place  for  our  papa— shall  it 
not,  boys  ?"    And  there  was  a  '•  Yes,  mama,"  from  the  old- 
est, with  a  "  'Es,  mama,"  from  the  little  parrot  brother. 
Then,  while  the  lamps  were  being  turned  up,  to  make  it 
brighter,  and  the  coals  on  the  hearth  stirred,  to  bring  out 
their  lovely  glow,  and  Mrs.  Harding  was  arranging  for  our 
game,  the  boys  grouped  themselves  at  my  knee,  and  told 
me  what  a  time  they  had  had  to-day,  in  breaking  their 
yoke  of  calves  ;  how,  becoming  thirsty,  they  had  run  the 
sled  into  a  pond  of  water,  and  upset  themselves,  and  there 
near  the  fire  were  the  drying  clothes  as  proof    The  eldest 
one  showed  the  sore  finger  he  had  for  the  day's  work,  and 
the  little  parrot  held  up  one  of  his  tiny  ones,  declaring  ho 
had  a  ''  sore  fin'er,  too."     And  so  in  this  prattle  of  their 
troubles,  my  own  sank  deeper  into  temporary  oblivion.  And 
when  Mrs.  Harding  said  the  cribbage  was  ready,  I  had 
come  to  feel  that  the  whole  world  was  bounded  by  the  four 
walls  then  inclosing  us,  and  that  it  was  a  very  happy  one, 
too. 

Scarcely  was  the  cribbage  over  before  two  small  sleepy 
19* 


442  A    YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

faces  presented  themselves  for  the  good-night  kiss  ;  a  little 
later,  ''  Spare  my  papa  and  mama,"  was  part  of  what  they 
had  been  taught  to  say ;  and  as  the  words  fell  on  ni}^  ear 
to-night,  there  arose  in  my  mind  the  question,  "  Will  this 
petition  be  answered  ?" 

Two  drowsy  voices  called  out  from  their  nest,  bringing 
my  thoughts  back  from  their  gypsying  :  "  Good-night, 
paj^a." 

"  Good-night,  darlings  ;  pleasant  dreams." 

*'  Pleasant  dreams,"  answered  one. 

"  P'esant  d'eams,"  echoed  the  other,  almost  inaudibly,  as 
sleep  was  taking  him  in  its  arms.  This  last  was  too  much 
for  me,  so  there  was  a  rush  to  the  bed-side,  and  more  hug- 
ging and  kissing,  until  the  mandate  of  the  little  one  came 
forth  :  "  Do  way,  mama  and  papa ;  I  want  to  do  to  s'eep," 
when  I  reluctantly  stole  out,  and  the  angels  began  their 
watch. 

As  I  walked  back,  after  saying  the  last  good-night,  the 
loose  boards  rattled  under  my  feet,  but  in  my  happy  mood 
I  seemed  to  be  treading  on  Turkish  carpet.  My  eyes 
rested  on  the  rude  wall  of  logs  only  to  transform  them  into 
costly  wainscoting  and  fresco-work  ;  and  there,  by  my 
side,  was  Mrs.  Harding,  needing,  as  I  thought,  only  wings 
to  be  an  angel.  There  was  no  dragging  on  of  time  under 
this  lotus  influence.  Indeed,  1  felt  that  the  moments  were 
passing  by  only  too  swiftly.  And  soon,  my  wnfe  following 
the  example  of  the  children,  I  was  left  alone  with  my 
thoughts. 

There  was  the  chirp  of  the  cricket  on  the  hearth,  the 
ticking  of  the  clock,  the  occasional  growl  of  the  faithful 
watch-dog,  the  hardly  audible  breathing  of  the  three  quiet 
sleepers — no  other  sound  greeted  my  ear.  I  looked  up 
among  the  rafters,  and  thought  I  saw  a  huge  diamond  hid- 
den away  there,  but  a  second  look  showed  it  to  be  a  star 
shining  through  a  crevice  in  the  roof.     I  opened  the  door 


I    START   OUT   TO   HOLD   COURT,   ETC.  443 

Stealthily,  and  crept  out  upon  the  gallery,  to  see  what  the 
night  promised. 

The  moon  was  high  in  the  heavens,  shining  now  with  a 
white  light.  There  was  not  a  cloud  to  be  seen,  and  the 
whole  aspect  of  the  night  was  assuring,  thus  strengthening 
the  pleasant  inspiration  of  the  evening  in-doors.  I  said 
to  myself:  "There  is  no  harm  in  a  region  that  can  pro- 
duce so  beautiful  a  night  as  this,"  when  "  whoop!  whoop  !" 
from  an  owl  on  the  roof  over  ray  head,  fell  like  a  dirge 
upon  me,  and  I  hastened  in,  hurried  to  bed,  and  covered 
ray  ears,  to  shut  out  the  doleful  sound  that  was  rapidly  de- 
stroying thedclightful  state  of  mind  I  had  previously  se- 
cured. 


CHAPTEE  LXXIY. 

I  START  OUT  TO  HOLD  COURT— AND  WHAT  COMES  OF  IT. 

At  last  the  hour  arrived  when  I  must  say  good-bye  to 
ray  family,  and  go  out  to  fulfill  ray  official  duties.  I  had 
thought  the  raatter  all  over.  If  I  were  to  be  raurdered,  it 
would  raost  likely  be  in  the  low^  swarap  region,  about  ten 
railes  back  from  the  Mississippi,  which  divides  the  hills 
and  the  river.  This  was  neutral  ground,  and  the  deed  be- 
ing done  there,  the  hill  people  could  charge  it  upon  the 
the  river  people,  and  vice  versa,  and  no  one  but  those  in  the 
conspiracy  would  know  the  guilty  parties. 

They  would  expect  me  along  Monday  raorning,  I 
thought,  and  be  in  ambush,  awaiting  me.  Why  not  flank 
them  by  going  out  Sunday  afternoon  ?  I  could  not  think 
if  I  reached  the  county-seat  in  safety,  there  would  be  any 
great  danger  for  rae.  But,  no,  I  would  not  try  to  shun  ray 
fate  by  stealing  out  a  day  in  advance.    Having  resolved  to 


444  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

undergo  the  ordeal,  I  must  take  no  step  that  would  show 
the  white-feather.  If  I  passed  through  it  with  my  life,  it 
must  be  with  bead  erect ;  if  not,  my  fate  must  be  met  with 
a  brave  front.  One  thing  I  would  accomplish,  if  I  died  for 
it — my  courage  should  be  acknowledged. 

The  worst-situated  man  has  always  something  in  his  fa- 
vor; to  me  this  was  the  animal  I  was  to  ride.  I  felt  cer- 
tain that  if  I  were  ambushed, — and  my  belief  was  that  this 
was  the  way  in  which  I  was  to  be  attacked,  if  at  all — and 
if  I  were  not  killed  or  seriously  wounded  at  the  first  vol- 
ley, and  before  I  could  place  my  would-be  murderers  be- 
hind me,  I  would  be  in  a  measure  safe.  My  mare  had  great 
speed,  wonderful  endurance,  was  as  quick  as  a  flash,  and  1 
felt  that  we  could  just  shoot  away  from  our  pursuers.  If 
1  do  not  stoj)  here  I  shall  say  too  much  of  this  wonderful 
brute — not  more  than  she  deserves,  for  that  would  be  im- 
possible ;  but  I  might  weary  the  reader.  Her  name  should 
have  been  "  Invincible,"  but,  instead,  it  was  simply 
"Kitty." 

For  several  days  before  my  departure  she  received  the 
closest  attention  as  to  feed  and  grooming — so  much,  in- 
deed, that  Mrs.  Harding  declared  herself  jealous  of  my  de- 
votion to  her ;  and  whenever  there  was  any  question  as  to 
my  whereabouts,  it  was  solved  by  finding  me  at  the  stable. 

When  Kitty  was  brought  out  for  starting,  she  would 
have  made  the  eyes  of  Eosa  Bonheur  twinkle.  "What 
strength  of  loin  she  disclosed,  and  how  the  cords  stood  out 
upon  her  shapely,  unblemished  limbs.  There  was  a  look 
in  her  eye  which  said  :  "  Never  fear ;  we  '11  be  enough  for 
them  to-day,  master." 

When  I  have  said  that  a  spectator  would  not  have  been 
likely  to  remain  unmoved  at  my  parting  with  my  family, 
I  have  said  enough. 

As  to  my  equipments,  it  is,  also,  enough  to  say  that,  save 
the  derringers  which  had  found  their  way  into  the  side- 
pockets  of  my  coat,  every  thing  else,  including  the  navy- 


I  START  OUT  TO  HOLD  COURT,  ETC.         445 

sixes,  were  in  the  saddle-bags  under  me.  And  so,  going 
out  to  administer  the  law  with  concealed  weapons,  I  be- 
came the  law-breaker. 

A  turn  in  the  levee,  half  a  mile  off,  showed  Mrs.  Hard- 
ing and  the  children  still  on  the  gallery.  Fluttering  hand- 
kerchiefs telegraphed  a  last  good-bye,  and  then  I  passed  out 
of  sight. 

I  was  due  at  court  at  ten  o'clock,  and  so  I  had  left  homo 
just  as  the  sun  was  showing  himself  over  the  woods.  There 
was  the  customary  coolness  of  this  gulf-region  in  the  atmos- 
phere, and  Kitty  swept  along  as  if  there  was  only  a 
feather  on  her  back.  But  the  time  for  the  push  had  not 
yet  come,  and  so  I  held  her  in.  To  test  her  I  jumped  a 
couple  of  ditches,  and  they,  seeing  a  five-rail  fence  along 
the  road-side,  I  made  a  dash  for  it,  and  she  vaulted  it  with- 
out hesitation,  or  apparently  great  effort.  How  proudly  I 
patted  her  neck,  telling  her  to  tr}-  it  again,  and  get  back 
into  the  road.  How  willingly  she  obeyed.  Thus  1  rode 
on,  jumping  several  good-sized  logs,  dashing  into  and 
through  some  thickets  which,  from  the  outside,  seemed  im- 
penetrable. Whatever  I  undertook  to  do,  a  slight  pressure 
of  the  spur  was  all  that  was  needed  to  send  my  mare  to  its 
successful  accomplishment.  I  felt  confident  that  I  could 
dodge  a  bullet,  if  one  should  bo  sent  after  me.  Yes,  but 
could  I  dodge  a  volley  of  them  ? 

Passing  through  the  village,  I  espied  a  party  of  the 
"  mischievous  boys  "  staggering  along  from  their  night  of 
drunken  debauch.  Southland  was  not  of  the  number. 
There  were  others  also  missing.  Should  I  find  them  fur- 
ther along  ?  The  air  of  the  village  seemed  charged  with 
bar-room  odors.  The  roofs  of  the  houses,  as  well  as  every 
thing  else,  were  wet,  as  if  the  town  were  in  tears.  And,  hor- 
rors !  there  a  little  further  on  in  the  road,  lay  a  negro  man 
with  a  hole  in  his  temple,  and  the  blood  still  slowly  oozing 
from  it,  showing  that  he  had  only  been  dead  a  short  time. 
Hanging  over  him,  as  if  contemplating  a  feast,  was  a  vil- 


446  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

lage  cur,  and  up  in  a  tree,  near  by,  was  a  flock  of  buz- 
zards. Kitty  shied  from  the  dead  man,  and  snorted  as  she 
smelled  the  blood,  rushing  forward  as  if  anxious  to  hurry 
her  master  and  herself  away  from  the  terrible  spectacle. 
Here  was  surely  death  in  our  path.  Was  there  more  of  it 
to  come  ? 

Getting  into  the  country  again,  the  scenes  had  a  quiet- 
ing effect.  There  were  the  cotton-pickers  at  work,  songs 
meanwhile  falling  from  their  lips.  The  rabbits  were  bus- 
ily hunting  their  morning  meal,  with  bird  and  insect  life 
every-where.  Then  a  proud  deer,  with  head  erect  and 
broad  antlers,  crossed  the  road  in  front  of  me ;  and  then 
some  wild-turkeys  flew  from  their  feeding  up  into  the  trees, 
and  looked  down  upon  me.  Thus  there  was  tempting  work 
for  my  navy-sixes,  but  the  mood  was  not  in  me  to  try  it. 
This  large  game  warned  me  that  I  was  nearing  the  point 
where  I  might  expect  trouble.  Soon  the  low  ground  was 
unmistakable.  There  were  the  marks  of  the  annual  over- 
flows high  up  on  the  trees  ;  there  were  the  mud  chimneys 
of  the  cray-fish,  and  the  cypress-knees,  serving  the  purpose 
of  lungs,  and  over  all  was  the  dense  growth  of  moss,  which 
one  never  sees  without  thinking  of  grave-yards. 

At  sight  of  these,  I  felt  my  heart  throbbing  more  quickly, 
but,  as  I  drew  the  reins  more  firmly,  I  saw  with  pleasure 
that  my  hand  was  steady,  showing  that  I  had  not  lost  con- 
fidence in  myself. 

The  road  was  but  little  more  than  a  pathway,  following 
a  tortuous  course  through  the  woods,  so  that  if  I  en- 
countered an  ambush  it  would  most  likely  be  at  a  sharp 
turn,  and  thus  with  scarcely  any  warning.  I  had  put  my 
noble  mare  down  to  her  best  work,  which,  in  spite  of  my 
apprehensions,  was  exciting  my  admiration,  when  she  came 
to  a  sudden  halt  by  a  vine  hanging  low  across  the  path. 
Quick  as  thought  I  turned  her  to  one  side,  laying  my  body 
upon  her  neck,  while  she,  understanding  what  was  needed, 
stooped  simultaneously  with  me,  and  thus  I  passed  under 


I  START  OUT  TO  HOLD  COURT,  ETC.         447 

it  successfully.  Looking  back,  as  I  shot  onward,  the  glance 
I  had  was  enough  to  make  me  tliink  tliat  the  vines  had 
been  purposely  pulled  down,  and  a  crackling  sound,  show- 
ing that  something  was  moving  near  the  spot,  convinced 
me  that  there  was  an  enemy  in  the  neighborhood,  and  that 
I  had  just  passed  his  first  trap.  One  more  chance  for  my  life, 
I  thought,  but  1  felt  also  a  certainty  that  there  was  trouble 
ahead.  How  I  thanked  my  mare  for  that  intelligent  act 
of  hers  in  getting  under  the  vine.  I  told  her  so,  patting 
her  on  the  neck.  She  moved  along  at  wonderful  speed. 
If  it  had  been  a  straight  road  I  might  have  defied  my  ene- 
mies, but,  crooked  as  it  was,  1  was  constantly  presenting  a 
broadside  for  assault.  How  I  used  my  eyes  !  They  must 
have  flashed  fire, — now.  peering  ahead;  now  glancing 
on  one  side,  now  on  the  other.  If  I  could  only  have 
looked  every  way  at  once,  so  as  to  know  which  way  to 
dodge ! 

There  was  another  sharp  turn  in  the  road,  as  near  as  I 
could  estimate,  a  mile  further  on  from  the  first  trap.  Sus- 
picious of  these  turns,  I  looked  sharply  in  that  direction. 
There  was  need  of  this.  Eight  across  the  road,  not  less 
than  four  feet  high,  was  a  matted  growth  of  vines,  and 
there  was  the  freshly-torn  appearance  of  the  woods,  show- 
ing that  it  had  just  been  prepared.  I  laughed  at  the  ob- 
stacle, and  my  now  foaming  steed  went  over  it  as  readily  as 
if  there  was  nothing  in  the  way.  I  knew  she  would  do 
this,  so,  beyond  lifting  the  reins  and  giving  her  the  spur,  I 
took  no  heed  of  it,  devoting  myself  to  watching  the  thick 
undergrowth  on  either  side  to  see  if  I  could  espy  an 
enemy. 

I  had  now  a  derringer  in  my  hand,  and  it  was  no  longer 
a  concealed  weapon  with  me.  I  had  a  glimpse  of  certainly 
two,  and  I  thought  three  men,  as  I  flew  on,  the  cowards 
stealthily  making  toward  the  trap,  with  guns  in  their 
hands.  They  were  masked,  and  so  unrecognizable.  They 
were  behind  me,  and  so  in  a  measure  harmless. 


448  A    YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

A  few  rods  further  I  heard  a  rustic  in  a  thicket  near 
the  road,  and,  looking  towards  it,  saw  three  mustang  ponies, 
saddled  and  bridled,  tethered  there.  They  were  doubtless 
the  property  of  the  men  behind.  I  had  passed  the  second 
ambush  in  safety.  Were  there  more  to  come?  On  and 
on  I  flew,  my  mare's  nostrils  distended,  and  her  sides  rap- 
idly swelling  and  falling  under  the  mighty  effort  she  was 
making,  my  eyes  strained  in  every  direction.  I  roused  up, 
as  I  went  on,  several  of  those  gloomy  reminders  of  death, 
buzzards  ;  also  those  emblems  of  innocence,  a  doe  and  her 
fawn.  Thus  there  were  sunshine  and  darkness  in  ray 
path. 

I  realized  that  every  leap  of  my  mare  carried  mo  so 
much  nearer  to  safety  or  further  danger,  and*  then  my 
heart  sank  within  me  when  I  thought  that  this  terrible 
gait  could  not  be  continued  much  longer.  But  I  also  knew, 
from  the  distance  I  had  come,  that  it  would  not  have  to 
be.  This  thought  encouraged  me,  when  suddenly  an- 
other turn  in  the  road  was  disclosed,  and  there,  half  visi- 
ble ahead  of  me,  were  the  dread  enemy  !  There  were  no 
vine-obstacles  this  time,  but  a  party  of  fiends,  mounted 
and  armed  !  Oh,  God !  1  here  thought,  if  I  can  only 
pass  them — if  I  can  only  put  them  behind  me !  I 
looked  down  at  my  spur  and  the  mare's  side ;  there  was 
blood  upon  them,  but,  notwithstanding,  I  struck  the  spur 
again  into  her  side,  and  how  she  responded  to  my  will ! 

There  was  a  rush  in  the  woods  as  I  swung  around  past 
the  enemy,  and — bang  !  bang  !  fell  upon  the  air,  and  then 
a  volley  of  musketry  followed.  The  bullets  whistled 
around  me,  and  a  stinging  sensation  in  the  hand  which 
held  the  reins  warned  me  that  I  had  been  struck.  Kitty 
shook  her  head  viciously,  which,  terrible  to  contemplate, 
caused  me  to  fear  that  she  too  was  wounded  ;  but  as  she 
continued  to  move  steadily  under  me,  I  concluded  that,  if 
wounded  at  all,  her  hurt  was  not  serious. 

Qood  ! — glorious !     I  had  passed  the  enemy  !     This  was 


I  START  OUT  TO  HOLD  COURT,  ETC.         449 

unquestionably  the  final  assault.    My  foes  were  in  the  rear. 
I  looked  back  for  the  double  purjiose  of  seeing  if  there 
were  any  blood-marks  on  my  mare,  and  to  learn  what  the 
enemy  were  doing.     I  could  see  no  such  marks,  but  the 
enemy  were  in  full  j^ursuit,  strung  out  behind  me.     They 
wore  masks  on  their  faces.     I  gave  them  a  shot  with  my 
derringer,    and   shouted  back  to  them:    "Come   on,   you 
cowards  !— catch  me  if  you  can  !"     Looking  ahead  again, 
I  saw  blood  running  down  the  side  of  Kitty's  head  from' 
her  left  ear.     I  leaned  forward  in  my  saddle,  and,  examin- 
ing it  as  best  I  could,  with  the  speed  she  was  making,  I 
found  a  bullet  had  passed  through  the  upper  part  of  the 
car.     Thus  the  extent  of  damage  done  was  this,  and  a  ball 
through  my  hand,  which  was  bleeding  profusely. 

Putting  the  empty  derringer  back  into  my  pocket,  I  took 
out  my  handkerchief  and  tried  to  stop  the  flow  of  blood 
with  it.     The  wound  was  almost  in  the  wrist,  and  in  close 
proximity  to  the  pulse  artery  ;  indeed,  I  feared  it  might  be 
the   pulse   artery   itself.     I   did    not  seem   to  be   able  to 
stop  the  flow,  and  I  felt  there  was  danger  of  my  bleeding 
to  death.     I  looked  back  again,  and  there  were  the  enemy 
still  in  pursuit,  though  falling  behind.     They  were  firing 
shots  at  me  at  frequent  intervals,  but  all  falling  short  of 
the  mark.     I  could   plainly  see  that  they  were  applying 
spur  and  whip  in  their  frantic  eff'ort  to  lessen  the  space  be- 
tween us.     Whether  it  were  fancy  or  not,  I  am  not  certain, 
but  there  was  a  striking  resemblance  to  Southland  in  one 
of  the  party.     As  nearly  as  I  could  count  them,  I  made  out 
seven  of  these  brave,  chivalrous  Southerners.     There  they 
were,  growing  smaller  and  smaller  as  I  looked  at  them. 

I  felt  safe  now— my  mare  having  no  serious  injury,  thero 
was  no  longer  any  doubt  of  my  escape.  But  my  still 
bleeding  wound  caused  me  some  fear.  What  with  hers  and 
my  own,  but  principally  my  own,  the  mare  was  streaked 
with  blood,  and  I  found  myself  growing  weaker. 


450  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

But  my  druggist  knowledge  came  into  play  to  save 
me.  I  bad  a  flask  of  whisky  in  my  saddle-bags,  tbe  cork 
of  wbicb  I  took  and  cut  into  balves.  This  gave  me  two 
pieces,  flat  on  one  side,  and  oval  on  tbe  otber.  Tbe  ball 
bad  passed  tbrougb  the  band.  I  placed  tbe  oval  face  of 
tbe  cork  across  tbe  wound  on  eitber  side,  strapping  tbe 
pieces  down  witb  my  bandkercbief,  tbus  arresting  tbe  se- 
vere flow  of  blood.  Tben  giving  tbe  flask  a  strong  pull,  I 
poured  tbe  rest  over  tbe  mare's  bead  and  neck,  throwing 
some  into  ber  nostrils  as  a  tonic.  Tbus  playing  tbe  sur- 
geon for  myself,  wbile  still  engaged  in  my  race  for  life,  I 
at  last  arrived  at  a  point  where  I  could  see  tbe  county-seat 
in  tbe  distance,  and,  fortunately,  at  a  small  running 
stream.  1  sat  there  upon  my  foaming,  panting  steed  for 
some  time,  and  listened  to  see  if  I  could  hear  any  sound 
of  my  pursuers.  I  could  not.  I  did  not  think  it  at 
all  likely  that  they  would  continue  their  pursuit  of  me  into 
tbe  village.  They  bad,  no  doubt,  ere  this  turned  back. 
The  mare  was  famishing  for  a  drink,  and  come  what  might 
I  would  take  the  chances  of  giving  it  to  ber.  She  that  bad 
done  so  much  for  me  deserved  all  at  my  hands  !  After  she 
had  finished  drinking,  still  bearing  no  sound  of  coming 
horses,  I  concluded  to  dismount  and  wash  off  tbe  blood 
from  Kitty  and  myself,  so  that  I  should  be  more  present- 
able before  entering  town.  This  I  did,  and  then  rode  into 
the  village.  Looking  at  my  watch,  I  found  it  only  eight 
o'clock.     I  bad  certainly  made  a  quick  trip. 

Wbile  riding  through  the  main  street,  I  decided  not  to 
speak  a  word  of  my  morning's  experience.  My  wound 
should  be  understood  to  be  simply  a  sore  band.  I  had  ex- 
amined Kitty's  wound  again  at  tbe  stream,  and  found  the 
bullet  bad  passed  through  the  upper  part  of  her  ear,  leav- 
ing only  a  small  bole  that  would  not  be  likely  to  excite 
suspicion.  I  felt  devoutly  thankful  to  tbe  Almighty  for 
having  spared  my  life.  There  was  also  a  feeling  in  my 
heart   for  the   brave   mare — I   felt   that,  notwithstanding 


I   nOLD   COURT.  451 

my  needy  condition,  the  amount  of  the  Hebron  indebted- 
ness would  not  buy  her.  In  fact,  I  then  felt,  I  was  amply 
repaid  for  all  I  had  suflfered  in  the  South  in  the  possession 
of  her.  This  might  all  be  very  foolish,  I  thought,  but, 
nevertheless,  I  felt  it.  Think  of  the  gauntlet  she  had  run 
for  me,  and  then  say  if  it  was  really  foolish.  She  had  en- 
abled me  to  place  at  defiance  the  devilish  machinations  of 
my  would-be  murderers ;  and  I  felt  that  if  I  could  look 
into  the  black  hearts  of  the  conspirators  who  had  lain  in 
wait  for  me,  while  I  should  still  find  hatred,  there  would 
also  be  respect,  in  that  they  had  found  a  new-comer  who, 
when  he  accepted  a  trust,  was  determined  to  fulfill  it. 

It  is  said  of  the  Southern  people  that,  when  once  they  find 
what  they  consider  a  courageous  man,  they  are  disposed 
to  let  him  alone.  The  hope  for  my  future  safety  was,  that 
this  morning's  experience  would  convince  them  that  I  was 
not  lacking  in  courage. 


CHAPTER  LXXY. 

I   HOLD   COURT. 

Arriving  at  the  village,  I  learned,  upon  inquiry  of  a  by- 
stander, where  lawyer  Whitely  lived,  and,  riding  directly 
there,  I  found  him  at  home.  I  had  always  heard  of  this 
gentleman  as  being  conservative  in  all  his  views,  rather 
the  leading  citizen  of  the  village,  and  a  warm  friend  to  the 
immigration  of  our  class.  He  gave  me  a  hearty  welcome, 
and  I  passed  a  great  deal  of  the  spare  time  during  my  ten 
days  of  court  in  his  society.  More  than  any  man  I  had 
met  since  my  residence  in  the  State,  he  made  sentiment  him- 
self, instead  of  allowing  the  sentiment  of  others  to  control 
him.     Inasmuch  as  he  fraternized  with  me,  it  did  not  seem 


452  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

disreputable  for  others  of  the  hill-people  to  do  so,  and,  for 
the  first  time  in  my  experience,  I  had  the  pleasant  sensa- 
tion of  finding  myself,  in  some  sense,  welcome,  and  not,  as 
always  before,  merely  tolerated.  It  was  clear  from  this 
that  my  class  could  make  headway  among  these  people 
much  more  rapidly  than  among  the  river  people. 

There  was  one  feature  of  my  arrival  which  impressed 
me  as  suspicious.  No  lawyers  came  out  from  the  river  on 
that  first  Monday,  but  the  next  day  they  were  there  in  a 
body.  Was  it  because,  for  some  mysterious  reason,  which 
they  understood,  they  did  not  think  any  court  would  be 
held  ;  but  found,  on  Monday,  later  in  the  day,  that  they 
were  mistaken  ?     Who  knows  ! 

On  the  faces  of  many  of  the  people  present  at  the  open- 
ing of  ray  court,  there  was  an  expression  of  great  surprise, 
and  I  also  marked  some  scowls,  as  an  off-set  to  which  there 
were  a  few  pleasant  faces.  I  was  a  great  curiosity,  and 
had  to  undergo  considerable  staring.  My  bandaged  hand 
was  looked  at  not  a  little  suspiciously. 

One  or  two  ugly  episodes  occurred.  AVhen  my  stay  was 
about  half  throufrh.I  was  standins:  in  the  midst  of  a  crowd 
of  people  in  the  court-room,  chatting  with  one  of  them, 
while  waiting  for  the  moment  to  arrive  at  which  to  of)en 
court.  Chancing  to  glance  across  the  court-room,  my  eye 
caught  that  of  Whitely  looking  at  me  with  an  expression 
of  most  intense  pain  and  apprehension  on  his  face,  and 
beckoning  me.  At  the  same  time  I  heard  a  noise,  and  then 
a  movement  with  shuffling  of  feet,  in  my  rear.  Turning 
quickly  I  saw  some  men  carrying  a  struggling  fellow  off, 
and  trying  to  take  from  him  a  huge  knife. 

"  What  is  the  matter?  "  I  asked  of  Whitely,  who  by  this 
time  had  made  his  way  over  to  me. 

"  Matter  !  "  said  he  ;  "  that  man  was  about  to  j^lunge  his 
knife  in  your  back,  and  would  havo  done  so  if  his  blow  had 
not  been  arrested." 

"Who  is  he?" 


I   nOLD   FORTH.  453 

no  gavo  tbo  name  of  a  man  I  had  often  hoard  of,  and 
who  it  was  known  had  committed  more  murders  than  ho 
liad  fingers  and  toes.  I  afterwards  heard  that  he  had  come 
to  town  with  the  avowed  intention  of  murdering  "  that 
d— d  Yankee  judge,"  and  ho  said  he  was  going  to  get  good 
jmy  for  it,  too. 

The  wretch  was  so  near  doing  his  work  that  I  remem- 
bered, after  it  was  over,  having  felt  a  pressure  on  my  back 
which  I  believed  was  the  knife.  When  I  went  to  my  room, 
this  imin-ession  was  verified  by  my  finding  a  slight  cut  in 
my  coat. 

"  You  had  a  narrow  escape,"  said  lawyer  Whitely,  his 
face  still  pallid. 

"  Yes,  indeed,  it  seems  so,"  I  answered,  feeling  profoundly 
thankful  at  my  escape. 

Then  I  took  my  seat  upon  the  bench,  and  held  court  dur- 
ing the  afternoon,  feeling  dazed  at  the  dreadful  experi- 
ences I  was  encountering.  That  night,  when  I  thought  it 
all  over  in  the  quiet  of  my  room,  and  in  connection%vith 
my  remarkable  escape  in  reaching  the  county-seat,  I  came 
almost  to  feel  that  Pbore  a  charmed  life. 

The  second  episode  was  as  follows :  There  were  some 
enumerations  being  made  under  the  auspices  of  the  Freed- 
man's  Bureau.     The  enumerators,  who  were  new-comers, 
were  in  session  in  one  of  the  rooms  below  the  court-room.' 
They  were  not  likely  to  have  suflicient   blanks  to  finish 
their  work.     This  they  knew  before  they  came  out,  and  so 
it  was  arranged  that  the  agent  of  the  Bureau  should  send 
more  upon  their  arrival  daily  expected,  from  New  Orleans. 
The  blanks  gave  out  before  the  new  supply  came.     It  was 
noised  around  that  it  was  all  a  "Yankee   trick"   which 
would  result  in  the  people  not  getting  a  fair  enumeration. 
This  suggestion  was  no  sooner  started  than  it  spread  like 
wild-fire.     An  angry  crowd  began  assembling  at  the  door 
of   the   office,    with    threats    to   pull    out   the    "  Yankee 
wretches"  and  hang  them  to  the  first  tree.     I  heard  the 


454  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

tumult  in  the  midst  of  the  session  of  my  court.  Pretty 
soon  lawyer  Whitely,  who  had  left  the  court-room  when 
the  noise  commenced,  came  back,  his  face  white  with  ex- 
citement. He  whispered  in  my  ear  the  nature  of  the 
trouble,  saying  : 

"  You  had  better  assemble  a  posse  to  maintain,  if  possi- 
ble, the  peace.  There  is  terrible  excitement  below  over  the 
non-arrival  of  the  blanks.  I  fear  the  result.  "When  will 
the  blanks  come?"'  he  added,  half  to  himself,  looking  out 
of  the  window  impatiently.  I  was  proceeding  to  make  a 
list  for  a  'posse,  at  the  same  time  apprehensive  as  to  whether 
my  mandate,  or  that  of  the  mob-court,  would  be  heeded, 
when  a  shout  below  announced  that  something  unu- 
sual had  occurred.  Whitely  hurried  out  to  see  what  it 
was.  Though  absent  but  a  moment,  it  seemed  an  age. 
He  returned  with  the  grateful  information  that  the  messen- 
ger had  just  arrived  with  the  blanks,  and  that  no  further 
trouble  need  be  apprehended. 

I  have  always  thought  that  but  for  the  opportune  arrival 
of  the  messenger,  this  would  have  been  my  fatal  day.  A  good 
deal  of  drinking  had  been  going  on  in  spite  of  my  order 
to  close  up  the  drinking-shops,  and  if  the  blood  of  the  poor, 
innocent  enumerators  had  been  shed,  the  mob  would  never 
have  rested  until  they  had  taken  my  life.  As  it  was,  while 
the  riot  was  brewing,  one  of  the  enumerators  was  struck  in 
his  side  with  the  point  of  a  bayonet,  put  through  the  open 
window,  and  the  crowd  seemed  bent  on  worrying  their  vic- 
tims to  death. 

In  the  afternoon  of  the  last  day  of  court  one  of  m}"  new- 
found friends  came  to  me  and  said  in  an  undertone  :  "  Don  't 
sign  your  docket  to-night.  Let  it  be  understood  you  '11 
sign  it  to-morrow,  before  you  leave  for  home.  Come  out  to 
my  house  and  stay  all  night.  Do  n't  tell  any  one  where 
you  are  going,  though.  I  mean  what  I  say,"  said  he,  sig- 
nificantly. 

'•  Thanks  ;  I  will  accept  your  kind  invitation  with  pleas- 


I   HOLD    FORTH.  455 

lire."  Accordingly,  after  court,  I  mounted  Kitty,  with  ray 
outfit,.and  proceeded  as  I  had  been  directed.  I  had  no  dif- 
ficulty in  finding  the  place,  but  it  would  be  impossible  to 
describe  ray  surprise  at  what  I  found  there.  It  was  a  fam- 
ily consisting  of  husband,  wife  and  two  daughters,  who 
had  never  seen  the  JN"orth,  or  scarcely  ever,  they  said,  met 
jNorthern  people,  and  yet,  so  far  as  I  could  see,  they  had 
not  the  shade  of  a  prejudice  against  them. 

I  found  on  their  table  Harper's  Weekly,  with  Putnam's 
and  Harper's  Monthlies.  There  were  copies  of  these  for  sev- 
eral consecutive  raonths,  indicating  that  the  faraily  were  sub- 
scribers. I  found  a  j^iano,  though  this  was  not  so  strange, 
and  choice  rausic,  including  among  the  patriotic  airs  "  Star- 
Spangled  Banner,"  "Yankee  Doodle,"  and  "The  Bonnie 
Blue  Flag."  There  was  choice  bric-a-brac  scattered  about, 
with  fine  specimens  of  embroidery  partly  done.  What  did 
it  all  mean?  Here  was  a  faraily  exclusively  Southern, 
with  whom  I  harmonized  as  if  they  had  mingled  always 
in  Northern  circles.  I  did  not  understand  it  then  ;  I  do 
not  now  exactly,  and  never  shall,  quite.  1  remember  very 
distinctly  to  have  had  this  delightful  experience, — there 
was  singing,  reading  and  discussion  for  an  evening  that 
ran  on  until  midnight,  but  which  did  not  seem  to  occupy 
an  hour.     All  this  I  will  make  oath  to  as  havin2:  occurred, 

O  7 

but  how  it  could  be,  considering  the  antecedent  surround- 
ings of  this  fiamily,  was  a  raarvel. 

Colonel  Edraunds — their  name  was  Edmunds,  and  their 
plantation  was  called  Edmundston — did  raore  than  I  have 
indicated.  He  did  not,  in  so  many  words,  tell  me  it  was 
arranged  to  murder  me  as  I  returned  home  the  next  day, 
nor  did  he,  perhaps,  intimate  that ; — just  what  he  did  was  to 
give  me  definite  instructions  as  to  my  course  homeward. 

"  There  is  no  need  of  your  returning  to  the  county-seat 
to  sign  your  docket.  You  can  do  that  when  you  come  out 
to  your  next  term.  You  must  go  back  to  the  river  by  the 
upper  road,  and  thus  avoid  the  route  you  came  before." 


456  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

He  seemed  to  lay  great  stress  upon  the  last  sentence,  and 
I  thought  his  eyes  said,  "  Yon  know  what  I  mean."  » 

Did  he  indeed  know  of  the  ordeal  I  had  passed  through 
at  that  time  ?  The  matter  had  not  been  spoken  of,  so  far 
as  I  knew,  and  to  all  appearances  it  was  not  known. 

There  must  have  been  an  expression  of  doubt  in  my 
face,  for  my  host  added  : 

''  Excuse  me,  sir,  but  I  have  the  best  of  reasons  for  ad- 
vising you  to  take  this  step.  The  upper  road  to  the  river 
is  one  seldom  traveled,  and  you  are  sure,'' — he  said  "  sure  " 
with  emphasis, — "not  to  be  at  all  interrupted  in  your 
journey."  I  had  intended  from  the  first  to  adopt  his  sug- 
gestions, whatever  they  might  be,  but  now  I  was  more 
than  ever  convinced  that  I  ought  to  do  so. 

"  1  will  certainly  take  the  route  you  suggest,  and  feel 
more  grateful  to  you  than  I  can  tell  for  your  advice,"  I 
said  warm'y. 

The  next  morning  I  was  off  in  good  time,  and  without 
interruption  reached  the  river. 

It  so  happened  that  at  the  point  where  I  came  out  there 
was  in  progress  some  sort  of  a  public  meeting.  It  must 
have  been  semi-political  in  its  character.  There  were  a 
hundred  or  so  of  white  people  assembled  around  the 
speaker's  stand,  with  several  hundred  negroes  on  the  out- 
skirts. As  I  rode  up  the  speaker  was  actually  engaged  in 
an  attack  upon  me,  telling  how  I  had  come  into  the  coun- 
try, and  was  now  undertaking  to  rule  them.  He  saw  me, 
and  his  countenance  expressed  the  utmost  surprise,  so 
much  so  that  he  stopped  his  harangue.  At  this  his  audience, 
who  had  been  aj^plauding  him,  at  least  the  white  portion 
of  them,  turned  around  to  see  what  Avas  the  matter,  and  saw 
me.  A  number  of  them  were  from  my  part  of  the  county, 
and  knew  me  at  a  glance.  If  I  had  been  one  from  the  dead 
the  expression  on  their  faces  could  not  have  been  more 
marked.  There  was  at  once  surprise,  consternation,  indig- 
nation and  chagrin  expressed,  and,  watching  them  closely 


I    HOLD    FORTH.  457 

as  I  did,  I  saw  significant  looks  pass  between  them.  My 
name  flew  from  lip  to  lip,  and  soon  every  one  knew  who 
the  stranger  was  who  had  so  quietly  and  unexpectedly 
ridden  into  their  midst.  I  knew  then  just  as  well  as 
afterwards,  when  it  was  told  as  a  fact,  that  I  had  again 
flanked  my  enemy;  that  it  was  supposed  I  was  then  on 
the  route  I  went  out  by,  and  that  there  was  an  ambush 
ready  for  me  this  time  that  I  could  not  pass.  Keed  I  say 
that,  terrible  as  the  situation  was,  looked  at  as  a  whole,  I 
yet  felt  a  sense  of  triumph  on  this  particular  occasion.  'No 
doubt  in  the  crowd  before  me  were  many  of  the  plotters 
of  ray  destruction,  and  here  I  stood  before  them,  having 
successfully  passed  through  the  fiery  furnace  their  malice 
had  prepared  for  me.  My  hand  was  still  in  a  sling — their 
bullet  had  made  its  mark ;  and  this,  too,  doubtless,  told  its 
story  to  some  of  those  present.  1  felt,  as  I  looked  them 
squarely  in  the  face,  that  I  now  had  a  mission  here,  not  alto- 
gether in  the  accomplishment  of  the  Dobson  scheme.  Then 
there  came  into  my  mind  a  terrible  resolve — to  try  to  per- 
form it,  even  though  its  goal,  as  was  not  unlikely,  should 
be  my  grave.  With  this  resolve  swelling  my  bosom,  how 
immeasurably  I  felt  myself  above  the  scared,  outwitted 
crowd  about  me  ! 

I  passed  out  of  their  sight  on  my  way  home.  In  course 
of  time  I  reached  the  village  landing.  Here  everybody 
knew  me,  and  here  again  I  read  consternation,  chagrin, 
surprise,  and  anger  in  the  faces  of  those  I  met.  I  looked 
out  for  Southland  and  others  of  his  party.  They  were 
missing ! 

The  mare,  from  this  on,  scented  her  home,  and  what 
strides  she  made  towards  it !  It  brought  back  to  my  mind, 
for  an  instant,  our  memorable  race  through  the  camp  of  the 
enemy. 

There,   on  the   gallery  to  welcome  me,  were  wife  and 

children — and  such  a  welcome  !     Then   the  whole   storv 

liad  to  be  told,  and  my  now  rapidly  healing  wound  looked 
20 


458  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

after,  tears  dropping  into  it  along  with  the  healing  lotion — 
the  former  I  declared,  laughingly,  much  more  healing  than 
the  lotion. 

I  never  mentioned  the  experience  just  described,  outside 
of  Hebron,  and  never  heard  it  spoken  of  in  the  county. 
Evidently,  if  I  did  not  care  to  expose  it,  the  participants 
on  the  other  side  did  not. 


CHAPTEE  LXXYI. 


RESULTS. 


The  history  of  one  day's  cotton-picking  is  the  history  of 
all,  and  so  the  months  went  by,  with  their  daily  receipts  of 
the  fleecy  staple,  until  the  first  of  December  came,  when 
the  crop  was  declared  gathered. 

No  ginning  had  been  done,  and  so  our  entire  yield  lay 
up  in  the  gin-house  chamber,  looking  like  an  enormous 
snow-bank.  I  had  no  idea  how  many  bales  it  would  make, 
but  one  day,  about  the  close  of  the  picking,  an  old-time 
overseer  chanced  to  be  passing,  and  I  asked  him  to  make 
an  estimate  of  it,  which  he  was  kind  enough  to  do,  placing 
it  at  two  hundred  and  sixty  bales.  He  said  he  could  "  es- 
timate a  pile  of  cotton  within  a  few  bales  of  what  it  would 
gin  out." 

This  was  a  terrible  fall  from  the  Dobson  estimate,  and 
£Otton  was  now  down  from  a  hundred  and  twenty  to  one 
hundred  dollars  a  bale  ;  but  upon  the  whole,  I  felt  relieved 
to  think  that  we  were  likely  to  have  so  much.  This  would 
give  us  twenty-six  thousand  dollars,  or  nearly  enough  to 
make  our  second  payment ! 

Thus  relieved,  as  soon  as  the  picking  was  over,  we  com- 


RESULTS.  459 

raenccd  ginning.  With  reasonable  success,  wc  could  finish 
in  five  weeks,  which  would  take  us  a  week  into  18G7.  It 
was  sad  enough  to  commence  ginning  on  a  two  hundred 
and  sixty  bale  crop,  but  soon  the  estimate  was  reduced 
sixty  bales,  and  then  sixty  more,  and  so  on,  until  the  at- 
mosphere around  the  gin-house  became  terribly  dismal. 

Finally,  when  the  entire  Hebron  crop  lay  out  in  a  row 
at  the  end  of  the  gin-house,  there  were  only  sixty-five 
bales  of  it.  Reader,  that  is  all  !  My  pen  almost  refuses  to 
make  the  statement,  but  this  is  a  true  story,  and  I  force  it 
to  the  discbarge  of  its  task.  To  be  exact  about  it,  and  to 
turn  over  this  terrible  leaf  in  our  experience  in  a  hurry,  I 
will  add  that  it  brought,  in  mone}',  sixty -five  hundred  and 
sixty-four  dollars  and  twenty-seven  cents,  out  of  which 
came  the  cask  of  claret,  with  the  bagging  and  ties,  and  the 
repair  of  the  engine — in  all  about  a  thousand  dollars. 

General  Dobson  went  to  his  log-cabin  sick,  and  I  to  mine, 
sicker.     There  it  was  : 

Promise— Dobson  estimate,  900  bales,  $120 $108,000  00 

Eealization,  65  bales 6,564  27 

making  the  slight  difference  of  835  bales,  amounting  to 
§101,435. 83;  or,  stated  in  round  numbers,  a  discrepancy 
of  over  one  hundred  thousand  dollars.  To  say  the  least, 
and  indulging  in  a  little  sarcasm,  the  outlook  was  not 
promising.  Many  a  time,  for  a  good  deal  less,  suicides 
have  been  committed.  Not  that  I  contemj^lated  any  thing 
of  the  kind,  only  the  thought  entered  my  mind,  and  I  let 
this  confession  go  out  with  the  rest. 

Then  I  asked  myself:  "  Is  this  a  legitimate  enterprise?" 
Thinking  it  carefully  over,  there  was  but  one  rcsiDonse,  and 
that  was,  "  Yes."  Then  I  again  resolved  to  prosecute  it,  if 
my  life  was  spared.  But,  of  course,  further  means  were 
required. 

I  still  had  resources  in  the  North,  but  these  I  felt  loth  to 


460  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

disturb,  and  so  I  concluded,  if  it  were  possible,  to  borrow 
the  means  necessary  to  continue  tlie  enterprise,  as  was  the 
custom  of  the  country,  in  New  Orleans  ;  having  long  since, 
in  the  case  of  the  claret,  persuaded  ourselves  to  borrow 
money  there  for  illegitimate  uses,  I  felt  that  I  should  not 
hesitate  to  solicit  it  for  legitimate  uses. 

I  talked  the  matter  over  fully  with  General  Dobson,  and  we 
agreed  upon  this  programme.  Beyond  the  ditching  on  the 
plantation  nothing  was  doing  at  Hebron,  or  would  be  done, 
until  we  commenced  the  crop  of  '67.  My  health  was  now 
pretty  thoroughly  undermined.  The  recent  blow  from  the 
final  result  of  the  Hebron  crop,  was  so  severe  that,  in  con- 
nection with  my  shattered  health,  I  did  not  seem  able  to 
rally. 

General  Dobson,  in  his  capacity  of  physician,  gave  it  as 
his  opinion  that  a  change  of  climate  was  necessary  for  my 
restoration  to  health.  Where  to  go  was  the  question. 
Crushed  and  broken  as  I  was,  I  had  no  heart  to  face  our 
friends  in  the  North.  It  would  certainly  be  necessary  for 
me  to  go  to  New  Orleans,  to  procure  the  proposed  loan,  and 
so,  after  fretting  around  several  days,  my  voice  growing 
weaker  and  my  sj^irits  more  depressed  meanwhile,  I  de- 
cided to  take  my  family  with  me  to  New  Orleans,  and  to 
reside  with  them  temporarily  on  the  shoal  waters  of  the 
gulf,  near  that  city,  where  we  should  find  salt-water  and 
sea-air,  which  Dobson  said,  above  all  things,  I  needed.  I 
could  not  well  bear  the  expense  of  such  a  journey,  but  much 
less  could  I  bear  the  thought  of  leaving  my  family  behind, 
with  all  their  inhospitable  surroundings.  Besides,  more 
than  ever  now,  I  needed  Mrs.  Harding's  watchful  care,  and 
she  herself  was  unwilling  to  let  me  go  without  it. 

Nothing  eventful  occurred  on  our  journey  to  the  Cresent 
City.  Anxious  to  secure  the  good  effects  of  salt  baths  and 
breezes,  we  hurried  through  New  Orleans,  and  at  once  lo- 
cated ourselves  at  one  of  the  numerous  gulf  watering- 
places.     After  resting  and  recuperating,  as  I  began  to  do 


RESULTS.  461 

at  once,  for  a  -svcck  or  two  I  visited  New  Orleans,  to  see 
what  could  be  done  toward  making  my  needful  financial 
arrangements. 

Greatly  to  my  disappointment  I  found  a  condition  of 
financial  distress,  not  second  to  my  own,  and  I  at  once  saw 
that  relief  from  this  quarter  was  out  of  the  question. 
JNTothing  remained  for  me  but  either  to  abandon  all  further 
thought  of  continuing  the  enterprise,  and  return  perma- 
nently to  the  North,  as  nine-tenths  of  the  new-comers  we 
found  were  doing,  or  to  seek  financial  relief  in  the  North. 
.  Still  feeling  strongly  that  the  Southern  country  had  a 
future,  1  resolved  upon  the  latter  course.  I  decided  to  do 
this  in  the  face  of  the  terrible  prejudice  I  could  see  every- 
where apparent  toward  every  thing  Northern.  Nowhere 
else  had  I  found  this  feeling  more  intensely  bitter  than  in 
New  Orleans,  and  the  little  watering-j^lace  on  the  gulf 
which  we  had  made  our  temporary  home,  likewise  evinced 
great  intolerance. 

The  simple  fact  that  we  were  new-comers  condemned  us. 
If,  as  a  class,  upon  coming  here  we  had  espoused  the 
"  Southern  cause,"  all  would  have  been  well  with  us.  Oc- 
casionally one  would  do  this,  and  it  was  astonishing  to  see 
how  soon  he  lost  his  identity  as  a  Northerner.  But  the 
Judases  in  this  army  of  immigrants  were  few,  and  so  the 
class  was  condemned. 

I  registered  myself  at  the  hotel  in  New  Orleans,  and  at 
the  watering-place  on  the  gulf,  as  a  resident  of  a  Southern 
State.  My  swarthy  face  testified  to  the  fact  that  1  was  this 
in  fact.  If  I  could  have  surrendered  my  manhood  enough 
to  have  claimed  an  anti-bellum  residence  in  some  one  of 
the  Southern  States,  all  would  have  been  well  with  us.  I 
could  have  gone  in  and  out  on  my  daily  walks  with  no  one 
to  molest  or  make  me  afraid  ;  so  long  as  the  antecedents  of 
our  residence  were  unknown,  I  did  so. 

Whether  sitting  in  the  rotunda  of  the  St.  Charles  hotel, 
at  New  Orleans,  or  on  the  veranda  of  the  gulf  hotel,  tak- 


462  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

ing  in  great  breaths  of  salt  air,  feeling  my  blood  flowing 
faster  through  my  veins,  and  enjoying  the  delightful  sen- 
sation of  returning  health,  the  people  around  me  talked 
freely.  There  was  but  one  topic — abuse  of  the  Xorth.  In 
the  few  days,  while  I  was  yet  unknown,  I  heard  all  about 
the  Ku-klux  of  the  South  ;  its  murders  were  freely  talked 
of,  and  with  no  more  feeling  than  one  would  talk  of  the 
killing  of  so  many  swine.  I  met  a  new-comer  whom  I  had 
known  as  a  resident  of  the  North.  I  heard  some  one  at 
the  hotel  ask  him  from  what  State  he  came  here. 

"  Missouri,"  he  answered. 

This  made  him  a  Southener  at  once,  and  was  his  pass. 

I  asked  him  afterwards  what  he  meant  by  that  state- 
ment. 

"  Do  n't  you  know,"  was  his  reply,  "  that  half  the  men 
living  here,  and  professing  to  come  from  some  one  of  the 
border  States,  either  only  passed  through  one  of  them,  or 
at  most  spent  a  week  or  so  there,  as  they  came  South  to 
live,  and  this  for  the  purpose  of  concealing  the  fact  that 
their  actual  residence  was  in  the  North  ?  It  works  splen- 
didly." 

"  Where  did  you  get  that  idea  ?" 

"  From  an  Indiana  flat-boat  man,  before  I  came  down. 
It's  old,  very  old.  '  Go  to  Kentucky,'  said  he  to  me, '  or  any 
border  slave  State  ;  take  up  your  residence,  even  if  you 
do  n't  stay  longer  than  a  day ;  then,  when  you  're  asked 
where  you  hail  from,  and  tell  them  a  Southern  State,  you  '11 
be  all  right.  It 's  mighty  seldom  a  flat-boat  man  hails 
from  a  free  State.  I  know  some  of  them  who  have  farms 
in  Indiana,  and  do  all  their  business  there,  and  yet  take  up 
their  residence  in  Kentucky,  so  as  to  say,  when  they  go 
South  with  their  crops,  that  they  hail  from  that  State. 
What  is  true  of  the  flat-boat  man  is  true  of  all  classes  of 
laborers  who  go  South  for  work." 

Mrs.  Harding  and  the  children  were,  as  Southerners  at 
the  hotel,  declared  by  every  body  "just  splendid,"  and 


RESULTS.  4G3 

were  quite  songLt  after.  A  grand-looking  lady  at  the  St. 
Charles,  in  particular,  was  anxious  that  her  little  daugh- 
ter should  take  as  her  play-mate  our  youngest,  and  she 
called  at  Mrs.  Harding's  room,  where,  the  latter  not  being 
in,  she  left  her  lavender-scented  card.  Every  thing  was 
charming  for  us;  but,  alas!  we  were  sailing  under  false 
colors,  and  could  not  stand  it. 

Eeluctantly  we  decided  to  do  so  no  longer — we  felt 
that  we  were  losing  our  self-respect.  We  had  to  listen  to 
such  dreadful  tirades  against  the  North,  and  Northern 
people,  as  became  intolerable,  and  finally  we  let  it  be 
known  that  we  were  new-comers.  Then  the  w^ay  the 
high-bred  lady  just  mentioned  pulled  her  little  daughter 
away  from  her  j)lay-mate  was  a  caution  ;  and  how  she 
stormed  at  having  called  on  "  that  Yankee  woman  " — was 
it  not  reported  by  that  chatter-box,  the  hair-dresser? 

"  Gods,"  I  exclaimed,  when,  after  it  was  known  we  were 
new-comers,  frowns  met  us  where  but  yesterday  we  were 
greeted  only  with  smiles,  "  what  has  the  North,  or  what 
have  Northern  people  done  to  be  so  mistreated  ?"  and  tiien, 
just  as  once  before  in  my  own  case,  distrust  entered  my 
mind — only  for  an  instant,  however — of  that  section  which 
was  being  so  terribly  traduced.  Then  all  the  loyalty  of  my 
heart  rose  to  the  defense  of  that  slandered  section,  and  I 
looked  squarely  into  the  faces  of  those  who  were  frowning 
upon  us,  as  only  a  man  can  do  when  he  is  thoroughly  con- 
scious of  being  in  the  right;  and,  neither  seeking  nor  avoid- 
ing the  oi:)portunity,  I  also  told  them  of  our  beliefs,  which 
were  in  no  sense  uncomplimentary  to  our  birth-place, 
though  perhaps  not  entirely  politic  for  us. 

The  time  came  for  me  to  make  my  trij^  to  the  North,  for 
the  purpose  of*  raising  the  means  necessary  to  continue  our 
enterprise.  It  was  decided  that  Mrs.  Ilarding  and  the 
children  should  remain  at  the  gulf  watering-j^lace  during 
my  absence,  and  I  should  pick  them  up  on  my  return  to 
Hebron.     I  hesitated   much  before  leaving  them  behind, 


464  A    YEAR   OF    WRECK. 

but  my  trip  with  them  all  would  have  been  very  expensive, 
and  I  was  really  forced  to  do  so.  I  found  in  ^ew  Orleans 
some  old  acquaintances,  to  one  of  whom  I  entrusted  my 
family  during  my  absence  ;  I  also  prepared  a  cipher  tele- 
gram to  be  forwarded  to  him  and  me  if  any  thing  unex- 
pected should  happen.     Then  came  the  good-by. 

More  than  ever  I  felt  I  was  leaving  my  family  sur- 
rounded by  enemies,  but  the  case  was  desperate.  I  jour- 
neyed northward  by  rail,  with  a  heavy  heart. 

Some  days  after  my  departure,  greatly  to  the  surprise  of 
Mrs.  Harding,  our  eldest  son  was  invited  to  dine  with  a 
family  of  natives,  where  there  was  a  house  full  of  j'oung 
girls,  and  one  son  nineteen  years  of  age.  I  had  never 
said  much  in  the  presence  of  my  family  about  the  state  of 
feeling  in  the  South  toward  J^ortherners,  so  Mrs.  Harding 
had  very  little  just  conception  of  it,  and  not  dreaming  that 
the  invitation  to  her  son  had  any  significance,  desir- 
ing to  add  to  the  pleasure  of  the  child,  and  avoid  any  sec- 
tional feeling,  she  gladly  accepted  the  invitation   for  him. 

He  was  treated  with  attentive  hospitality,  dined  upon 
the  fat  of  the  land,  and  in  every  respect  had  an  enjoyable 
visit.  When  he  took  his  leave  he  was  urged  to  be  so- 
ciable. 

The  next  evening,  while  the  family  were  seated  on  the 
gallery,  one  of  the  elder  girls  called  to  invite  him  to  join 
a  party  on  the  beach,  for  a  moonlight  boat-ride.  It  was 
arranged  that  he  was  to  go  immediately  there,  and  she 
would  follow.  "When  he  reached  the  beach,  he  found  but 
one  member  of  this  pleasant  family,  and  that  the  son,  with 
some  seven  other  boys,  none  younger  than  himself.  As  he 
stepped  towards  them  in  the  twilight,  he  was  confronted 
by  one  of  the  number  with  : 

"  Are  you  a  Yankee  ?     Where  has  your  father  gone  ?  " 

While  these  questions  were  being  asked,  greatly  to  the 
surprise  of  the  boy,  a  second  stepjDed  up  in  his  rear  and 
dealt  him  a  blow  in  the  back  which  staggered  him,  knock- 


RESULTS.  465 

ing  his  hat  off,  and,  his  tongue  being  between  his  teeth 
when  the  blow  was  given,  his  jaws  came  suddenly  together, 
cutting  it  badly.     A  third  kicked  his  hat,  saying: 

"  You  d d  little  Yankee,  we've  got  you  now,  and  we 

propose  to  kick  the  breath  out  of  you."  Another  blow  on 
his  back  sent  the  poor,  dazed,  puzzled  boy  to  the  ground, 
and  then  the  whole  crowd  of  young  Southerners  com- 
menced pounding  and  kicking  him. 

He  shouted,  "  Help,  help." 

His  mother  still  sat  on  the  gallery,  where  he  had,  but  the 
moment  before,  left  her  with  joyous  anticipations  of  the 
bright  moonlight  ride  he  was  about  to  have  on  the  gulf. 
Mrs.  Harding's  heart  was  swelling  with  kindly  feeling  for 
the  people  who  were  showering  attentions  upon  her  eldest, 
when  his  cry  for  help  fell  upon  her  ear.  She  immediately 
recognized  his  voice,  and  flew  down  the  path  half  crazed 
at  the,  to  her,  terrible  appeal.  She  was  dressed  in  white, 
and  as  she  rushed  along,  responsive  to  that  heartrending 
cry,  in  the  evening  dusk,  it  was  as  the  flitting  of  a  spirit. 
There  was  in  her  mind  the  thought  that  her  boy  had  fallen 
into  the  water  andwas  drowning.  That  fearful  cry  for  help 
certainly  meant  something.  As  she  dashed  on,  it  contin- 
ued at  intervals— only  growing  fainter,  as  if  from  weak- 
ness or  being  in  some  way  suppressed.  At  last,  breathless, 
she  reached  the  beach.  She  saw  a  crowd  of  what  appeared 
to  be  men  apparently  in  a  struggle,  and  from  under  them 
came  up  the  sufl'ocatcd  cry  for  help.  She  rushed  up  to 
the  chivalrous  crowd,  who,  seeing  her,  desisted  from  their 
fiendish  task.  Then  she  saw  her  poor,  beaten  boy  lying 
upon  the  ground.  One  of  the  Southern  braves  had  a  pis- 
tol in  his  hand.  The  crowd  parted,  and  she  raised  her 
poor  boy,  taking  him  in  her  arms  ;  they  stood  aghast  at  the 
spectacle  of  this  enraged  woman.  The  moon,  shimmered 
across  the  waters  of  the  gulf,  lighting  up  her  face,  upon 
which  were  playing  at  once  expressions  of  rage,  conster- 
nation and  joy.  Then  she  said,  as  if  she  would  have  the 
20* 


466  A    YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

bitterness  in  her  heart  drop  from  her  lips,  and  with  with- 
ering scorn  :  "  Is  this  Southern  chivahy  ?  I  have  read  of 
it  frequently,  but  this  is  my  first  experience  with  it."  Then 
she  added,  as  she  pressed  her  restored  boy  to  her  breast : 
"  God  grant  it  may  be  my  last  experience  with  it."  As  she 
turned,  with  her  disabled  son  on  her  arm,  she  looked  into 
their  faces,  as  they  stood  with  open,  speechless  mouths  and 
staring  eyes. 

The  mother,  sore  at  heart,  the  boy  bruised  in  body  and 
crushed  in  spirit  at  the  terrible  ordeal  through  which  he 
had  passed,  slowly  and  sadly  went  back  to  their  room. 
There  was  no  more  sitting  on  the  gallery  for  that  night. 
Beaching  their  room,  mother  and  child  fell  upon  their 
knees,  and  with  her  hands  upon  that  swollen  face,  she  of- 
fered up  her  thanks  to  God  for  the  escape  of  her  child. 
There  was  but  little  sleep  that  night  in  the  chamber  occu- 
pied by  that  unprotected  mother  and  her  two  boys. 

The  following  morning,  the  watchful  eye  of  his  mother 
noticed  an  expression  on  the  injured  boy's  face,  which 
boded  mischief  to  some  one.  She  called  him  to  her  side, 
and  pressing  him  to  her  bosom,  begged  him  to  tell  her 
what  was  in  his  mind. 

"  Mama,"  the  manly  little  fellow  answered, "  I  have  been 
terribly  outraged,  and  I  feel,  if  I  am  to  die  for  it,  like 
having  revenge.  What  an  awful  thing  it  was  for  that  girl 
to  toll  me  out  last  nio-ht  into  the  clutches  of  those  brutes. 
If  I  can  catch  one  of  them,  and  the  largest  one,  too,  by 
himself,  either  he  must  whip  me,  or  I  will  whijD  him.  Now, 
there,  mama,  you  have  it." 

The  mother  used  all  her  persuasive  power  upon  her  son 
to  dissuade  him  from  his  intention,  but  to  no  purj^ose. 

During  the  forenoon  of  the  next  day,  while  sitting  in 
their  room,  a  crowd  of  men  stopped  before  their  windows, 
and  groaned  in  the  most  hideous  manner,  also  calling  out : 

"  Where  's  your  protector  ?"  "  You  'd  better  keep  close." 
•'Andy  Johnson 's  on  our  side."     ''We'll  make  it  hot  for 


RESULTS.  467 

you  here."  "You'd  better  make  your  Yankee  hides 
scarce."  ''  We  've  got  you  spotted,"  etc.,  etc.,  until  the 
air  grew  thick  ^vith  their  fearful  yells  and  talk. 

Mrs.  Uarding  decided  at  once  to  send  the  cipher  tele- 
gram to  New  Orleans,  but  not  to  her  husband,  her  thought 
being  that  if  she  and  her  boys  were  in  New  Orleans  they 
would  be  safe.  Somebody  had  to  take  the  telegram  to  the 
office,  and  tremblingly  did  Mrs.  Harding  place  it  in  the 
hands  of  her  eldest  son,  cautioning  him  to  hurry  there  and 
back. 

A  careful  observer  would  have  detected  an  expression  of 
joy  on  the  boy's  face  when  he  started  out.  If  this  observer 
had  watched  him,  he  would  have  been  seen  hurrying  to  the 
office  to  deposit  his  message,  with  an  exi^ression  of  relief 
on  his  face  when  the  task  was  done.  Then,  as  he  started 
back,  there  was  firm  determination  pervading  his  every 
look  and  movement.  As  he  walked  down  the  street,  he 
was  evidently  on  the  watch  for  some  one,  and  several  times 
it  was  noticeable  that  his  right  hand  was  clinched,  as  if 
ready  to  deal  a  blow.  Not  far  from  home,  out  on  the  beach, 
was  a  boy  several  sizes  larger  than  himself.  Glancing 
around,  as  he  was  constantly  doing,  his  eye  rested  upon 
this  boy.  A  gleam  of  vindictive  joy  shot  across  his  face, 
and  sooner  than  I  can  tell  it,  he  was  at  his  side. 

"  You  are  one  of  the  wretches  that  attacked  me  last 
night.  You  called  me  a  Yankee,  and  you  kicked  me,  and 
I  '11  show  you  that  Yankees  can  fight,  even  if  they  are 
smaller  than  you."  Then  he  jumped  upon  him,  like  an  en- 
raged tiger,  and  before  he  finished  with  him  somebody  had 
a  black  eye,  bloody  nose,  and  was  yelling  loudly, ''  enough," 
and  it  was  not  young  Harding,  either.  The  latter  went  homo 
with  a  triumphant  expression  on  his  face,  and  told  his 
mother  what  he  had  done. 

"I  should  never  have  been  satisfied  with  myself,  mama, 
if  I  had  n't  got  this  opportunity  to  show  I  'm  not  a  cow- 


468  A   YEAR   OF   WRECK. 

ard."  The  boy  was  scolded  by  Lis  mother;  but  as  is 
often  the  case,  1  fear  the  reproof  only  came  from  her  lips 

That  night,  thanks  to  the  kind  friend  who  responded  at 
once  to  Mrs.  Harding's  telegram,  the  family  was  safely 
sheltered  in  a  private  boarding-house  at  New  Orleans,  to 
await  the  return  of  Mr.  Harding. 

A  week  later  found  the  latter  and  his  family  back  at  He- 
bron, where  I  will  now  leave  them,  hojMng  that  the  year 
1867  will  prove  as  fortunate  to  them  as  these  pages  show 
the  year  1866  to  have  been  unfortunate. 


SUPPLEMENTARY   CHAPTER.  469 


SUPPLEMENTARY  CHAPTER. 

This  narrative  was  prepared  prior  to  ISVG.  It  was  then 
laid  aside,  where  it  has  quietly  rested,  takini^  on  coats  of 
dust  and  cobwebs,  and  apparently  abandoned  to  the  ravages 
of  nibbling  mice  and  the  slow  decay  of  time.  At  last  it 
leaves  its  hermitage  to  do  its  part  in  portraying  the  South 
at  an  important  era  in  its  history.  To  give  the  reader  a 
glimpse  of  the  present,  so  that  he  may  judge  the  extent  of 
the  improvement,  this  brief  supplement  is  adder! .  The  South 
of  1806  and  1880  is  different.  From  the  midnight  darkness 
of  a  densely  clouded  sky  as  then,  there  are  now  stars  to  be 
seen.  Largely  have  we  got  rid  of  the  weeds  in  our  fields. 
Would  that  I  could  say  as  much  of  those  in  our  hearts  and 
feelings.  A  good  deal  I  can,  however,  say.  We  are  grow- 
ing more  of  everything  than  was  grown  before  the  war. 
The  production  of  the  greater  part  of  the  world's  supply  of 
cotton,  both  as  to  quantity  and  quality,  as  of  old,  rests  with 
the  South.  Thus,  and  this  time  in  no  offensive  sense,  Cot- 
ton is  again  king.  In  view  of  this  fact,  and  that,  save  in 
Texas,  there  has  been  no  immigration  into  the  South  since  the 
war  (except  my  class,  most  of  whom,  as  these  pages  indicate, 
fled  from  the  country  within  the  year),  it  is  conclusive  that 
the  negro  as  a  free  laborer  is  a  success ;  and  I  am  pleased 
to  say  that  such  is  the  undisputed  belief  with  the  class  of 
Southern  people  who  have  to  deal  with  them.  Nowhere 
else  now  is  the  feeling  stronger  than  here  that,  in  a  business 
point  of  view,  slavery  was  a  mistake.  There  is  a  more  sub- 
stantial prosperity  here  now  than  before  the  wai-.  Only 
a  fraction  of  the  millions  of  indebtedness  that  hung:  like  a 


470  SUPPLEMENTARY   CHAPTER. 

pall  over  the  South  in  1861  has  ever  been  paid;  but,  thanks 
to  an  elastic  national  bankruptcy  law,  the  debts  have  been 
cancelled,  leaving  in  some  mysterious  way,  to  a  great  extent, 
the  lands  in  the  same  hands.     Manufactories  are  springing 
up  rapidly.     There  were  no  cotton -seed  oil  factories  here 
before  the  war;   there  are  none  anywhere   else   now.     A 
moderate  percentage  of  the  cotton  grown  is  now  manufact- 
ured at  home.     There  being  nothing  to  fear  from  runaway 
slaves,  railroads  are  being  built.     The  "mischievous  boys" 
are   disappearing,  their  dissipation   giving  them   an   early 
claim  to  that  six  feet  of  ground  the  heritage  of  all.     Nota- 
bly, Southland  is  dead.     He  learned  to  think  more  kindly 
of  my  class  in  the  years  that  followed;  and  once  when  I  was 
at  the  village,  and  he  hungry,  he  borrowed  a  dollar  of  me ; 
went  at  once  to  a  Chinese  restaurant,  spent  it  for  food,  and 
thus  gorged,  hid  himself  away,  where  he  was  discovered  the 
following  day  a  corpse.      General  Parker,  also,  long  since 
commenced  his  journey  to   that  "bourn  from  whence   no 
traveller  returns,"  thus  reducing  the  annual  consumption  of 
whiskey  six  barrels.     Tyler,  too,  is  of  the  past — gone  to  meet 
at  the  Judgment-day  that  brave  Confederate  officer  whom 
he  so  foully  murdered,  as  also  a  dozen  others  of  his  murder- 
ed victims.     The  village  merchant  finally  learned  that  cash 
was  better  than  credit;  lacking  it, he  had  to  close  his  doors. 
They  are  open  again  now,  this  time  on  a  cash  basis.     It  is 
doubtful  if  the  best  Southerner  in  the  land  could  purchase 
so  much  as  a  box  of  matches  of  him  on  credit.     Xor  does 
he  now  hesitate  to  speak  out  against  the  "  mischievous  boys," 
or  to  fraternize  with  the  new-comers;   nor  is  he  by  any 
means  alone  in  this  latter  feeling.     The  negro  has  gradually 
worked  his  way  up  from  the  lower  deck  on  steamboats,  until 
now  upon  the  later  built  ones  he  has  a  cabin  of  his  own, 
above  that  of  the  "  white  folks,"  in  which  are  to  be  found 
piano,  silver-ware,  and  about  the  same  cuisine  as  the  white 
fellow-passengers  below  have.      No  legislation  lias  accom- 


SUPPLEMENTARY   CHAPTER.  471 

pllshed  this.  It  lias  simply  grown  out  of  the  fact  that  the 
negro  has  the  money  to  pay  for  such  accommodations.  lie 
has  not  yet,  however,  gained  access  to  the  bar  in  the  main 
cabin  of  steamboats.  God  grant  it  may  be  long  before  he 
does!  lie  can,  however,  walk  up  to  the  clerk's  desk  "along 
of  de  white  folks,"  and  get  his  bill  of  lading  for  his  cotton 
shipped  to  his  merchant  in  Xew  Orleans.  It  is  sad  to  say 
that  at  the  village  landing  the  numerous  bars,  without  an  ex- 
ception, are  open  alike  to  whites  and  negroes.  The  prejudices 
of  the  Southerner  to  renting  the  negro  land,  mules,  etc.,  soon 
disappeared,  and  about  the  same  percentage  of  them  are  get- 
ting along  financially  as  are  white  people.  As  to  education, 
nothing  short  of  a  compulsory  system  will  answer  the  pur- 
pose, and  this  is  true  of  both  white  and  black.  If  the  read- 
er will  recall  Mr.  Sinton's  lovely  home,  he  will  understand 
what  Hebron  has  grown  to  be.  With  prosperous  crops,  as 
soon  as  our  plantation  was  redeemed  of  its  weed-ridden  con- 
dition, we  throve,  and  the  log-cabins  made  way  for  preten- 
tious mansions;  then  rapidly  came  the  needful  surroundings, 
to  make  them  cheerful  and  comfortable :  so  now,  if  needs  be 
for  us  to  spend  the  midsummer  season  at  home,  we  can  do 
so  with  pleasure.  Most  of  the  negroes  referred  to,  as  with 
us  in  18G6,  are  still  our  tenants.  In  many  cases  their  woolly 
heads  are  now  fleecy  white,  as  ours  is  sprinkled  plentifully 
with  gray.  We  have  all  grown  older  fast,  in  the  terrible 
ordeal  of  so-called  Reconstruction,  but  Avhich  history  will 
term  Destruction.  Ole  Clara  is  married,  this  time  "  out  ob 
de  book,"  and,  a  little  superannuated  as  she  has  grown  to 
be,  spends  most  of  her  time  in  religious  duties.  The  de- 
voted servant  of  Mrs.  Dobson,  the  General  has  built  her  a 
cabin  in  which  she  can  spend  the  balance  of  her  days.  The 
beautiful  Mary  and  Jimmy  are,  as  they  long  have  been,  a 
fixture  on  Hebron.  Frances  and  Liss,  who  were  once  so 
vicious  and  wild,  are  now  sober  wives  and  mothers.  The 
South  of  1880  is  more  tolerant  than  the  South  of  18GG.     But 


412  SUPPLEMEXTAEY    CHAPTER. 

it  Las  yet  so  much  to  learn  on  this  score  !  There  are  por- 
tions of  it  now — a  very  few — where  a  Northerner,  whatever 
his  politics  may  be,  is  as  highly  respected  as  he  would  be 
anywhere  in  the  North  ;  but,  generally  speaking,  any  one  in- 
imical to  the  politics  of  this  section  is  simply  tolerated,  and 
would  receive  a  similar  treatment  to  ours  of  1866  ;  and  there 
are  regions — alas !  a  great  many — where  his  personal  safety 
would  be  in  question.  Nearly  everywhere  the  good  element 
is  under  the  domination  of  the  "mischievous  boys."  Many 
times  in  my  region  have  I  thought  that  the  former  were  on 
the  eve  of  asserting  themselves,  only  to  be  disappointed. 
Still,  I  can  see  that  each  year  the  good  element  is  growing 
stronger,  and  the  time  icill  come  when  it  will  have  the  up- 
per hand.  God  speed  that  day  !  Long  since  has  the  coarse 
display  of  pictures  of  Confederate  generals  ceased,  and  in 
their  stead  are  to  be  seen  the  counterparts  of  pictures  to  be 
found  in  the  North.  Northern  papers  are  now  circulating 
generally  in  the  South;  Southern  people  are  visiting  the 
North,  and  through  these  instruments  they  are  slowly  learn- 
ing that  there  are  two  sides  to  every  question ;  and  so  the 
improvement  goes  on,  it  may  be  at  a  snail's  pace,  but  be  it 
remembered,  given  a  number  of  years,  a  snail's  pace  means 
many  miles ! 

These  straws  must  satisfy  the  reader  that  something  has 
been  accomplished  since  the  war.  What  more  is  needed  to 
make  the  South  as  free  as  the  North  will  come,  and  with  it 
unexampled  prosperity. 


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VII.  to  the  Death  of  George  II.  Bv  He>tiy  Hallam.  8vo,  Cloth, 
$2  00;  Sheep,  82  50. 

HALLAM'S  LITERATURE.  Introduction  to  the  Literature  of  Eu- 
rope during  the  Fifteenth,  Sixteenth,  and  Seventeenth  Centuries. 
By  Henry  Hallam.     2  vols.,  8vo,  Cloth,  $4  00 ;  Sheep,  $5  00. 

SCHWEIXFURTH'S  HEART  OF  AFRICA.  The  Heart  of  Africa. 
Three  Years'  Travels  and  Adventures  in  the  Unexplored  Regions 
of  the  Centre  of  Africa — from  1868  to  1871.  By  Dr.  Georg 
ScH^vEiNFURTH.  Translated  by  Ellen  E.  Frewer.  "With  an  Intro- 
duction by  WiNwooD  Reade.  Illustrated  by  about  130  Wood-cuts 
from  Drawings  made  by  the  Author,  and  with  two  Maps.  2  vols., 
8vo,  Cloth,  $8  00. 

M'CLIXTOCK  &  STRONG'S  CYCLOPAEDIA.  Cyclopaedia  of  Bib- 
lical,  Theological,  and  Ecclesiastical  Literature.  Prepared  by  the 
Rev.  John  M^Clintock,  D.D.,  and  Jaaies  Strong,  S.T.D.  9  vols,  now 
ready.  Royal  8vo.  Price  per  vol..  Cloth,  $5  00 ;  Sheep,  $6  00 ; 
Half  Morocco,  $8  00.     {^Sold  by  Subscription.) 

MOHAMMED   AND   MOHAMMEDANISM :   Lectures  Delivered  at 

the  Royal  Institution  of  Great  Britain  in  February  and  March,  1 874. 
Bv  R.  i3oswoRTH  Smith,  M.A.,  Assistant  Master  in  Harrow  School ; 
late  Fellow  of  Trinity  College,  Oxford.  With  an  Appendix  contain- 
ing Emanuel  Deutscti's  Article  on  "Islam."    12mo,  Cloth,  $1  50. 

MOSHEIM'S  ECCLESIASTICAL  HISTORY,  Ancient  and  Modern ; 
in  which  the  Rise,  Progress,  and  Variation  of  Church  Power  are 
considered  in  their  connection  with  the  State  of  Learning  and  Phi- 
losophy, and  the  Political  History  of  Europe  during  that  Period. 
Translated,  with  Notes,  etc.,  by  A.  Maclaine,  D.D.  Continued  to 
1826,  by  C.  Coote,  LL.D.     2  vols.,  Svo,  Cloth,  4  00 ;  Sheep,  $5  00. 

HARPER'S  NEW  CLASSICAL  LIBRARY.     Literal  Translations. 

The  following  volumes  are  now  ready.     12mo,  Cloth,  $1  50  each. 

C^SAR. — Virgil. — Sallust. — Horace. — Cicero's  Orations. — Cice- 
ro's Offices,  etc. — Cicero  on  Oratory  and  Orators. — Tacitus 
(  2  vols. ). —  Terence.  —  Sophocles.  —  Juvenal.  —  Xenophon. — 
Homer's  Iliad. — Homer's  Odyssey. — Herodotus. — Demosthenes 
(2  vols.).  —  Thucydides. — JEschylus.  —  Euripides  (2  vols.). — 
LivY  (2  vols.). — Plato  [Select  Dialogues]. 

NICHOLS'S  ART  EDUCATION.  Art  Education  applied  to  Indus- 
try. Bv  George  Ward  X'ichols.  Illustrated.  Svo,  Cloth,  $4  00 ; 
Half  Calf,  $6  25. 


Valuable  Worls  for  Public  and  Private  Libraries. 


PAKTOX'S  CARICATURE.  Caricature  and  Other  Comic  Art,  in 
All  Times  and  Many  Lands.  By  James  Parton.  With  203  Illus- 
trations.    8vo,  Cloth,  Uncut  Edges  and  Gilt  Tops,  $5  00 ;  Half 

VINCENT'S  LAND  OF  THE  WHITE  ELEPHANT.  The  Land 
of  the  White  Elepliant:  Sights  and  Scenes  in  Southeastern  Asia. 
A  Personal  Narrative  of  Travel  and  Adventure  in  Farther  India, 
emhrac-mg  the  Countries  of  Burma,  Siam,  Cambodia,  and  Cochin- 
Chnia  (1871-2).  By  Frank  Vincent,  Jr.  Illustrated  with  Maps, 
Plans,  and  Wood-cuts.     Crown  Svo,  Cloth,  $3  50. 

LIVINGSTONE'S  SOUTH  AFRICA.  Missionary  Travels  and  Re- 
searches  ni  South  Africa :  including  a  Sketch  of  Sixteen  Years' 
Residence  in  the  Interior  of  Africa,  and  a  Journey  from  the  Cape 
of  Good  Hope  to  Loanda  on  the  West  Coast ;  thence  across  the 
Continent,  down  the  River  Zambesi,  to  the  Eastern  Ocean  By 
David  Livingstone,  LL.D.,  D.C.L.  With  Portrait,  Maps,  and  Illus- 
trations.    Svo,  Cloth,  $4  50 ;  Sheep,  ^5  00 ;  Half  Calf,  $0  75. 

LIVINGSTONE'S  ZAMBESL  Narrative  of  an  Expedition  to  the 
Zambesi  and  its  Tributaries,  and  of  the  Discovery  of  the  Lakes 
Shirwa  and  Nyassa,  1858-1864.  By  David  and  Charles  Living- 
stone. Map  and  Illustrations.  Svo,  Cloth,  $5  00 ;  Sheep,  So  50  • 
Half  Calf,  $7  25.  ' 

LIVINGSTONE'S  LAST  JOURNALS.  The  Last  Journals  of  David 
Livingstone  in  Central  Africa,  from  1865  to  his  Death.  Contin- 
ued by  a  Narrative  of  his  Last  Moments  and  Sufferings,  obtained 
from  his  Faithful  Servants  Cliuma  and  Susi.  Bv  Horace  Waller, 
F.R.G.S.,  Rector  of  Twywell,  Northampton.  With  Portrait  Map=! 
and  Illustrations.  Svo,  Cloth,  $5  00;  Sheep,  8-">  50;  Half  Calf' 
87  25.  Cheap  Popular  Edition,  Svo,  Cloth,  with  Map  and  Illustra- 
tions, $2  50. 

GROTE'S  HISTORY  OF  GREECE.  12  vols.,  12mo,  Cloth,  818  00  • 
Sheep,  822  80 ;  Half  Calf,  839  00.  ,  ,  v  , 

RECLUS'S  EARTH.  The  Earth  :  a  Descriptive  History  of  the  Phe- 
nomena of  the  Life  of  the  Globe.  By  Elisee  Reclus.  With  234 
Maps  and  Illustrations,  and  23  Page  Maps  printed  in  Colors.  Svo 
Cloth,  85  00.  ' 

RECLUS'S  OCEAN.  The  Ocean,  Atmosphere,  and  Life.  Being  the 
Second  Series  of  a  Descriptive  History  of  the  Life  of  the  dobe. 
By  Elisee  Reclus.  Profusely  Illustrated  with  250  Maps  or  Fi''- 
urcs,  and  27  Maps  printed  in  Colors.     Svo,  Cloth,  86  00.  ° 

VAN-LENNEP'S  BIBLE  LANDS.  Bible  Lands  :  their  Modern  Cus- 
toms and  Manners  Illustrative  of  Scripture.  Bv  the  Rev.  Henry 
J.  Van-Lennep,  D.D.  With  upward  of  350  Wood  Engravings  and 
two  Colored  Maps.  838  pp.,  Svo,  Cloth,  85  OO;  Sheep,  86  00; 
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6  Valuable  Worlcs  for  Piiblic  and  Private  Libraries. 

NORDHOFF'S  COMMUXISTIC  SOCIETIES  OF  THE  UXITED 
STATES.  The  Communistic  Societies  of  the  United  States,  from 
Personal  Visit  and  Observation;  including  Detailed  Accounts  of 
the  Economists,  Zoarites,  Shakers,  the  Amana,  Oneida,  Bethel,  Au- 

.  rora,  Icarian,  and  other  existing  Societies.  With  Particulars  of 
their  Religious  Creeds  and  Practices,  their  Social  Theories  and  Life, 
Numbers,  Industries,  and  Present  Condition.  By  Charles  Xord- 
HOFF.     Illustrations.     8vo,  Cloth,  $-4  00. 

XORDHOFF'S  CALIFORNIA.  California :  for  Health,  Pleasure, 
and  Residence.  A  Book  for  Travellers  and  Settlers.  Illustrated. 
8vo,  Cloth,  $2  50. 

XORDHOFFS  NORTHERN  CALIFORNIA  AND  THE  SAND- 
WICH ISLANDS.  Northern  California,  Oregon,  and  the  Sandwich 
Islands.     By  Charles  Nordhoff.     Illustrated.     8vo,  Cloth,  $2  50. 

SHAKSPEARE.  The  Dramatic  Works  of  William  Shakspeare. 
With  Corrections  and  Notes.  Engravings.  6  vols.,  12mo,  Cloth, 
$9  00.  2  vols.,  Svo,  Cloth,  $4  00 ;  Sheep,  $5  00.  In  one  vol., 
Svo,  Sheep,  $4  00. 

STRICKLAND'S  (Mlss)  QUEENS  OF  SCOTLAND.  Lives  of  the 
Queens  of  Scotland  and  English  Princesses  connected  with  the  Re- 
gal Succession  of  Great  Britain.  Bv  Agses  Strickland.  8  vols., 
12mo,  Cloth,  $12  00 ;  Half  Calf,  $26  00. 

BAKER'S  ISMAILTA.  Ismailia :  a  Narrative  of  the  Expedition  to 
Central  Africa  for  the  Suppression  of  the  Slave-trade,  organized  by 
Ismail,  Khedive  of  Esfvpt.  Bv  Sir  Samuel  White  Baker,  Pasha, 
F.R.S.,  F.R.G.S.  With  Maps,'  Portraits,  and  Illustrations.  8vo, 
Cloth,  $5  00;  Half  Calf,  $7  25. 

BOS^YELL'S  JOHNSON.  The  Life  of  Samuel  Johnson,  LL.D.,  in- 
cluding a  Journal  of  a  Tour  to  the  Hebrides.  By  James  Boswell, 
Esq.  Edited  by  John  Wilson  Croker,  LL.D.,  F.R.S.  With  a  Por- 
trait of  Bosweli.     2  vols.,  Svo,  Cloth,  $4  00 ;  Sheep,  $5  00 ;  Half 

Calf,  $S  50. 

SAMUEL  JOHNSON :  HIS  WORDS  AND  HIS  WATS ;  what  he 
Said,  what  he  Did,  and  what  Men  Thought  and  Spoke  Concerning 
him.    Edited  by  E.  T.  Masox.     12 mo,  Cloth,  $1  50. 

JOHNSON'S  COMPLETE  WORKS.  The  Works  of  Samuel  John- 
son, LL.D.  With  an  Essay  on  his  Life  and  Genius,  by  Arthur 
Murphy,  Esq.  2  vols.,  Svo,  Cloth,  $4  00 ;  Sheep,  $5  00 ;  Half 
Calf,  S8  50. 

GRIFFIS'S  JAPAN.  The  Mikado's  Empire :  Book  I.  History  of  Ja- 
pan, from  660  B.C.  to  1872  A.D.  Book  II.  Personal  Experiences, 
Observations,  and  Studies  in  Japan,  1870-1874.  By  William  El- 
liot Griffis,  A.m.,  late  of  the  Imperial  University  of  TOkio,  Japan. 
Copiously  Blustrated.     8vo,  Cloth,  $4  00  ;  Half  Calf,  $6  25. 


Valuable  Works  for  Public  and  Private  Libraries.         7 

SMILES'S  HISTORY  OF  THE  HUGUENOTS.  The  Hutruenots: 
their  Settlements,  CIuutIic?,  jukI  Industiies  in  England  and  Ireland. 
Hy  Samiel  Smiles.  With  an  Appendix  relating  to  the  Huguenots 
in  America.     Crown  8vo,  Cloth,  $2  00. 

SMILES'S  HUGUENOTS  AFTER  THE  REVOCATION.  The  Hu- 
guenots in  France  after  the  Revocation  of  the  Edict  of  Nantes ; 
with  a  Visit  to  the  Country  of  the  Vaudois.  By  Samuel  Smiles. 
Crown  8vo,  Cloth,  $!2  00. 

SMILES'S  LIFE  OF  THE  STEPHENSON'S.  The  Life  of  George 
Stephenson,  and  of  his  Son,  Robert  Stephenson  ;  Comprising,  also, 
a  History  of  the  Invention  and  Introduction  of  the  Railway  Loco- 
motive. By  Samuel  Smiles.  With  Steel  Portraits  and  numerous 
Illustrations.     8vo,  Cloth,  $3  00. 

RAWXINSON'S  MANUAL  OF  ^VXCIENT  HISTORY.  A  Manual 
of  Ancient  History,  from  the  Earliest  Times  to  the  Fall  of  the 
Western  Empire.  Comprising  the  History  of  Chaldtea,  Assyria, 
Media,  Babylonia,  Lydia,  Phaniicia,  Syria,  Judtea,  Egypt,  Carthage, 
Persia,  Greece,  Macedonia,  Parthia,  and  Rome.  By  George  Raw- 
LiNSOX,  M.A.,  Camden  Professor  of  Ancient  History  in  the  L'niver- 
sity  of  Oxford.     12mo,  Cloth,  $1  25. 

THE  VOYAGE  OF  THE  "CHALLENGER."  The  Atlantic:  an 
Account  of  the  General  Results  of  the  Vovage  during  1873,  and  the 
Early  Part  of  1876.  By  Sir  W^yville  '  TnoMSOx,  K.C.B.,  F.R.S. 
With  numerous  Illustrations,  Colored  Maps,  and  Charts,  from  Draw- 
ings by  J.  J.  Wyld,  engraved  by  J.  D.  Cooper,  and  Portrait  of  the 
Author,  engraved  by  C.  H.  Jeens.     2  vols.,  8vo,  Cloth,  $12  00. 

ALISON'S  HISTORY  OF  EUROPE.  First  Series:  From  the 
Commencement  of  the  French  Revolution,  in  1789,  to  the  Restora- 
tion of  the  Bourbons  in  1815.  [In  addition  to  the  Notes  on  Chap- 
ter LXXVL,  which  correct  the  errors  of  the  original  work  concern- 
ing the  L'nited  States,  a  copious  Analytical  Index  has  been  ap- 
pended to  this  American  Edition.]  Second  Series:  From  the  Fall 
of  Napoleon,  in  1815,  to  the  Accession  of  Louis  Napoleon,  in  1852. 
8  vols.,  8vo,  Cloth,  $16  00;  Sheep,  $20  00;  Half  Calf,  $34  00. 

WALLACE'S  GEOGR.\THICAL  DISTRIBUTION  OF  ANIMALS. 
The  Geographical  Distribution  of  Animals.  With  a  study  of  the 
Relations  of  Living  and  Extinct  Faunas,  as  Elucidating  the  Past 
Changes  of  the  Earth's  Surface.  By  Alfred  Russel  Wallace. 
WMth  Maps  and  Illustrations.     In  2  vols.,  8vo,  Cloth,  $10  00. 

WALLACE'S  MALAY  ARCHIPELAGO.  The  Malay  Archipelago: 
The  Land  of  the  Orang-L'tan  and  the  Bird  of  Paradise.  A  Narra- 
tive of  Travel,  1854-1802.  With  Studies  of  Man  and  Nature.  By 
A.  R.  Wallace.    Maps  and  Illustrations.    Crown  8vo,  Cloth,  $2  50. 

BOURNE'S  LIFE  OF  LOCKE.  The  Life  of  John  Locke.  By  H.  R. 
Fox  Bourne.    2  vols.,  8vo,  Cloth,  Uncut  Edges  and  Gilt  Tops,  $5  00. 


8  Valuable  Worlcs  for  Piiblic  and  Private  Libraries. 

BLUXT'S  BEDOUIX  TRIBES  OF  THE  EUPHRATES.  Bedouin 
Tribes  of  the  Euplirates.  By  Lady  Anne  Blunt.  Edited,  with  a 
Preface  and  some  Account  of  the  Arabs  and  their  Horses,  by 
W.  S.  B.     Map  and  Sketches  by  the  Author.     8vo,  Cloth,  $2  50. 

BROUGHAM'S  AUTOBIOGRAPHY.  Life  and  Times  of  Henry, 
Lord  Brougham.      Written   by  Himself.      3  vols.,  12mo,  Cloth, 

$6  00. 

THOMPSOX'S  PAPACY  AXD  THE  CIVIL  POWER.     The  Papacy 
.  and  the  Civil  Power.     Bv  the  Hon.  R.  W.  Thompson,  Secretary  of 
the  U.  S.  Xavy.     Crown  8vo,  Cloth,  $3  00. 

THE  POETS  AXD  POETRY  OF  SCOTLAXD :  From  the  Earliest 
to  the  Present  Time.  Comprising  Characteristic  Selections  from 
the  Works  of  the  more  Xoteworthy  Scottish  Poets,  with  Biographi- 
cal and  Critical  Xotices.  By  James  Grant  Wilson.  With  Por- 
traits on  Steel.  2  vols.,  8vo,  Cloth,  $10  00;  Sheep,  $12  00;  Half 
Calf,  $14  50;  Full  Morocco,  $18  00. 

THE  STUDEXT'S  SERIES.  With  Maps  and  Illustrations.  12mo, 
Cloth. 

France. — Gibbon. — Greece. — Rome  (by  Liddell). — Old  Testament 
History.  —  Xew  Testament  History.  —  Strickland's  Queens  of 
England  (Abridged). — Ancient  History  of  the  East. — Hallam's 
Middle  Ages. — Hallam's  Constitutional  History  of  England. 
— Lyell's  Elements  of  Geology. — Meriv ale's  General  History 
of  Rome. — Cox's  General  History  of  Greece. — Classical  Dic- 
tionary.    Price  $1  25  per  volume. 

Lewis's  History  of  Germany.  —  Ecclesiastical  History. — 
Hume's  England.     Price  $1  50  per  volume. 

CAMEROX'S  ACROSS  AFRICA.  Across  Africa.  By  Vernt:y  Lov- 
ETT  Cameron,  C.B.,  D.C.L.,  Commander  Royal  Xavy,  Gold  Medalist 
Royal  Geographical  Society,  etc.  With  a  Map  and  numerous  Illus- 
trations.    8vo,  Cloth,  $5  00. 

EARTH'S  XORTH  AXD  CEXTRAL  AFRICA.  Travels  and  Dis- 
coveries in  ^orth  and  Central  Africa;  being  a  Journal  of  an  Ex- 
pedition undertaken  under  the  Auspices  of  H.B.M.'s  Government, 
in  the  Years  1849-1855.  By  Henry  Barth,  Ph.D.,  D.C.L.  Illus- 
trated. 3  vols.,  8vo,  Cloth,  $12  00;  Sheep,  $13  50;  Half  Calf, 
$18  75. 

ADDISOX'S  COMPLETE  WORKS.  The  Works  of  Joseph  Addi- 
son, embracing  the  whole  of  the  Spectator.  3  vols.,  8vo,  Cloth, 
$6  00;  Sheep,  $7  50;  Half  Calf,  $12  75. 

TEXXYSOX'S  COMPLETE  POEMS.  The  Poetical  Works  of  Al- 
fred Tennyson,  Poet-Laureate.  AVith  numerous  Illustrations  by 
Eminent  Artists,  and  Three  Characteristic  Portraits.  8vo,  Paper, 
$1  00;  Cloth,  $1  50. 


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